ABSTRACT

A qualitative study was carried out in crèche at Ministry of Agriculture, Umuahia to assess the nutritional status and dietary intake of children aged 5-28months.Questionnaire and focus group discussion were used to collect information on the socio-economic and demographic factors of the households and the nutritional status of the children. The factors included: The maternal education, paternal occupation, paternal income, maternal occupation, infant/child health data, and infant/child care practices. Other factors like caregivers nutritional knowledge, practice and care were also included. Reference standards used were those of the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). SPSS, a computer programme was used for data analysis. The results showed that the levels of stunting, wasting and underweight in the children were 45.6%, 10.3% and 25%, respectively. The results revealed that 35% of the children were anemic. Age had a significant (p>0.05) effect on the level of underweight. The study also revealed that the higher the nutritional care by the caregivers, the lower the level of underweight among the children. In addition, the study revealed the lack of health facility and lack of caregiver training. A poor perception of the importance of the crèche in child growth and development was reported in 66% of the caregivers. The nutrient intake of the children was found to be adequate in protein and calorie but deficient in micronutrients like iron and vitamin A. The results of the study imply that efforts for combating child malnutrition in crèche should focus on addressing factors associated with development of maternal education, improved caregiver knowledge and care and also involvement of Ministry of Health and other non-governmental agencies that will not fail to uphold the important care practices to achieve an optimum growth of children.