Effect of school feeding program on anemia and stunting among primary school children in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; a quasi experimental study
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Date
2018-10
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Addis Ababa Universty
Abstract
Background: School feeding is the Provision of meal at school with a primary objective of alleviating short-term hunger, reducing malnutrition and improving child survival. Prevalence of Stunting and anemia are high in children living in urban slums. In Ethiopia the burden of anaemia is the most common nutritional deficiency as in many developing countries. Stunting is a problem of high public health importance with major unenthusiastic health and societal impacts in the developing world .School meals should be designed to improve the nutrient intake and Nutritional status of beneficiaries.
Objective; The study aimed at evaluating the effect of school feeding programs on anemia and stunting levels among beneficiaries and on evaluating meals for adequacy in nutrient contribution.
Method; a quasi-experimental study was conducted among primary school children enrolled in governmental primary schools in Addis Ababa Ethiopia from April to May 2018.Samples were selected by simple random sampling . To assess the portion size and nutrient contribution of the school meal Weighed food record method was used. Hemoglobin was determined by a haemoglobin meter (HemoCue AB). Height for age index was computed from Anthropometric measurements. Stata version 14, WHO Anthroplus and Nutri survey software were used for data analysis. A total sample size of 409 (203 in the Feeding and 206 in the Non feeding groups) were involved in the study.
Result the response rate was 96.6% in the intervention (those involved in school feeding programs) and 98.1% in the comparison group (those not involved in school feeding programs). The mean ± SD age was 11.8 ± .14 and 12.09 ± 0.13 in the intervention and comparison groups respectively. From the total 409 participants 67 (16.38%) were anemic. Level of anemia was 13.3% and 19.42% in the intervention and comparison group respectively (p<0.05). Stunting prevalence was similar among the two study arms (32.5% in intervention Vs 31.6% in comparison).Iron contribution from School meals was adequate for all age and sex groups except for girls in the age group of 10-14 years .
Conclusion and Recommendation School feeding was effective in reducing anemia but it was not effective on decreasing levels of stunting among participants .The school meal contributed the adequate amount for Iron but it failed to contribute the recommended amount for Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Zinc , protein and Energy. The school meals need to be reviewed by the responsible body in order to increase the nutrient content, and improve stunting, we suggest considering Multiple Micronutrient powders to fortify school meals with the necessary nutrients.
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School feeding is the Provision of meal at school