EC Nutrition

Research Article Volume 19 Issue 7 - 2024

Prevalence and Dietary Practices Associated with Childhood Overweight and Obesity among Pupils Aged 6-15 Years Attending Public Primary Schools in Kisumu Central Sub-County, Kisumu County, Kenya

Lilian Mbithe Musau1*, Agatha Christine Onyango2 and Dickens Omondi Aduda3

1Department of Public Health, School of Public Health and Community Development, Maseno University, Maseno, Kenya

2Department of Nutrition and Health, School of Public Health and Community Development, Maseno University, Maseno, Kenya

3Department of Biomedical Sciences and Nursing, School of Health Sciences, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology, Bondo, Kenya

*Corresponding Author: Lilian Mbithe Musau, Department of Public Health, School of Public Health and Community Development, Maseno University, Maseno, Kenya.
Received: June 14, 2024; Published: June 21, 2024



Overweight for children aged 6 - 15 years is body mass index for age equivalent to or above 85th percentile while obesity for the same age group is body mass index (BMI) for age equivalent to or above 95th percentile. In Kenya the prevalence is estimated at 21%, being higher among females (10.9% obese and 3.6% overweight) than males (6.5% obese and 2.6% overweight). The etiology of this condition is closely linked to the individual’s dietary practices. However, there is still scarce information on the trends and distributions of these risk factors among children. The main objective was to determine dietary practices associated with childhood overweight and obesity among public primary school-going pupils aged 6 - 15 years in Kisumu central sub-County, Kisumu County, Kenya. A sample of 15 primary schools was identified through simple random sampling from a list of all schools in Kisumu Central Sub-County. 1268 eligible male and female participants aged 6 to 15 years were selected through simple random sampling for screening. Out of 1268 children, 282 overweight and obese children were selected to continue with the study. Dietary recall tool was used to assess dietary practices for a period of one week. Saskatchewan Food Costing Task Group tool was used to assess school food environment. Chi-square, Binary logistic regression and Pearson product moment correlation were used to determine association between dietary practices and childhood overweight and obesity. Dietary practices associated with childhood overweight and obesity were: number of times eaten in a day (r = 0.176, p < 0.002), carrying snacks to school (X2 = 77.510, p < 0.000), high consumption of beverages (70.6%), sweets (47.2%), cereals (99%), deep-fried chips (50%) and failure of schools to collaborate with community partners to create and sustain a healthy nutrition environment (r = 0.922, p < 0.001). These results may inform planning and implementation of school health policies to mitigate factors influencing childhood obesity and overweight in primary schools in Kisumu and Kenya at large.

 Keywords: Overweight; Obesity; Body Mass Index; Dietary Practices; Food Environment; World Health Organization

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Lilian Mbithe Musau., et al. “Prevalence and Dietary Practices Associated with Childhood Overweight and Obesity among Pupils Aged 6-15 Years Attending Public Primary Schools in Kisumu Central Sub-County, Kisumu County, Kenya”. EC Nutrition  19.7 (2024): 01-16.

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