Assessment of the Nutritional Status of Junior High School Students – Evidence from Mfantseman Municipality of Ghana

Kwaw Emmanuel; Sackey; Augustina Sackle; Awere; Eric

doi:doi:10.11648/j.sjph.20130105.16

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Assessment of the Nutritional Status of Junior High School Students – Evidence from Mfantseman Municipality of Ghana

Kwaw Emmanuel, Sackey, Augustina Sackle, Awere, Eric

Published in Science Journal of Public Health (Volume 1, Issue 5)

Received: 28 October 2013 Published: 20 November 2013

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Abstract

Malnutrition is one of the major problems facing the developing countries, especially among children. It is estimated that, 28% of children under the age of five are stunted whilst 14% are underweight in Ghana. Minister of Food and Agriculture in 2004 asserted that the Intelligent Quotient (IQ) of Ghanaian children has generally reduced due to poor dietary composition of their food coupled with little attention paid to good nutrition and that the nation is likely to suffer the consequences of unintelligent generation. It is against this background that this study was conducted to assess the nutritional status of Junior High School (JHS) students in the Mfantseman Municipality in the Central Region of Ghana with the objectives of estimating the body mass index (BMI) of the students through anthropometric measurements and use the BMI to determine their nutritional status as well as finding out factors contributing to their nutritional status. The study used purposive, convenient and random sampling techniques to select 7320 school children. Data was collected on the students’ age, height and weight. The Body Mass Index (BMI) for age was calculated and compared with the 2007 WHO reference to identify their nutritional status. The study revealed that overall prevalence of malnutrition in the community was high with 25.9% of the children being overweight, 5.5 and 5.8% been lean or severely lean while 39.0% were normal. The incidence of malnutrition was prevalent among boys than girls. The high incidence of malnutrition may be attributed to improper dietary habits, unawareness of balanced diet, poor prenatal nutrition and low family income.

Published in	Science Journal of Public Health (Volume 1, Issue 5)
DOI	10.11648/j.sjph.20130105.16
Page(s)	222-226
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2013. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Nutritional Status, Malnutrition, Body Mass Index, Dietary Habits, Mfantseman Municipality

References

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[2]	Sunita, K. 2005, Assessment of nutritional status of school children from rural Bihar. The Indian Journal of Nutrition and Dietetics, 42: 326.
[3]	Karim, R., Bhuyan, M. A. H. and Shukanta, S. 1991, Effect of nutrition on school performance in a primary school in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Indian Journal of Nutrition and Dietetics, 28: 171-176.
[4]	Pollitt, E., Cueto, S. and Jacoby, E. R. (1998). Fasting and cognition in well and undernourished school children: a review of three experimental studies. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 67: 797-840.
[5]	Fernstrom, J. D., Uauy, R. and Arroya, P. (2001). Nutrition and brain. Nestle Nutri. Work. Series, 5: 69-72.
[6]	Upadhyaya, S. K., Singh, T. B., Alka Srivastava and Bhatia, B. D., 2001, Perceptual development in relation to nutritional status. Indian Journal of Pediatrics, 68 (4): 327-332.
[7]	Sorhaindo, A. and Feinstein, L. (2006). What is the relationship between child nutrition and school outcomes? Wider Benefits of Learning Research Report No.18, London.
[8]	Hasan, I., Zulkifle, M. and Ansari, A. H. (2011). An assessment of nutritional status of the children of government Urdu higher primary schools of Azad Nagar and its surrounding areas of Bangalore. Archives of Applied Science Research, 3 (3), 167-176
[9]	Nemapare, P. N. (1999). Health and nutrition status of rural children. Earthwatch Institute Watertown: U.S.A.
[10]	Anonymous, (2005). The state of world’s children. UNICEF report, Oxford University Press, New Delhi, pp. 112-118.
[11]	Otoo, G. E. (2008). Nutritional Status of Children in Ghana. WISHH Ghana Annual Conference, 6th November, 2008, Accra-Ghana.
[12]	Ghana News Agency (2004). Poor Nutrition affects IQ of Ghanaian Children. Retrieved on June 16, 2013.
[13]	Ghana Statistical Service (GSS), Ghana Health Service (GHS), and ICF Macro. 2009b. Ghana Demographic and Health Survey 2008: Key Findings. Calverton, Maryland, USA: GSS, GHS, and ICF Macro.
[14]	Ghana Statistical Service (GSS), Ghana Health Service (GHS), and ICF Macro. 2009a. Ghana Demographic and Health Survey 2008: Preliminary Report. Calverton, Maryland, USA: GSS, GHS, and ICF Macro.
[15]	Suvarna, (2007). Nutritional Status, Level of Intelligence and Participation in Extracurricular Activities of School Children. Master’s Thesis. University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad.
[16]	PohSiang C. (1990). Nutritional status of Indian pre-school children in the rubber plantation sector in Malaysia. The Indian J. nutr. Dietet., 27: 144.
[17]	Deshmukh, P. R., Gupta, S. S., Bharmbe, M. S., Dongre, A. R., Maliye, C., (2006). Nutritional status of adolescents in rural Wardha. Indian Journal of Paediatrics 73, 139-141.
[18]	Shahabuddin, A. K., Talukdar, K., Talukdar, M. K., Hassan, M., Seal, A., (2000). Adolescent nutrition in a rural community in Bangladesh. Indian Journal of Paediatrics 67, 93-98.
[19]	Venkaiah, K., Damayanti, K., Nayak, M. U. and Vijayraghavan, K. (2002). Diet nutritional status of rural adolescents in India. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition 56 (11), 19-25

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APA Style

Kwaw Emmanuel, Sackey, Augustina Sackle, Awere, Eric. (2013). Assessment of the Nutritional Status of Junior High School Students – Evidence from Mfantseman Municipality of Ghana. Science Journal of Public Health, 1(5), 222-226. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.sjph.20130105.16

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ACS Style

Kwaw Emmanuel; Sackey; Augustina Sackle; Awere; Eric. Assessment of the Nutritional Status of Junior High School Students – Evidence from Mfantseman Municipality of Ghana. Sci. J. Public Health 2013, 1(5), 222-226. doi: 10.11648/j.sjph.20130105.16

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AMA Style

Kwaw Emmanuel, Sackey, Augustina Sackle, Awere, Eric. Assessment of the Nutritional Status of Junior High School Students – Evidence from Mfantseman Municipality of Ghana. Sci J Public Health. 2013;1(5):222-226. doi: 10.11648/j.sjph.20130105.16

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@article{10.11648/j.sjph.20130105.16,
  author = {Kwaw Emmanuel and Sackey and Augustina Sackle and Awere and Eric},
  title = {Assessment of the Nutritional Status of Junior High School Students – Evidence from Mfantseman Municipality of Ghana},
  journal = {Science Journal of Public Health},
  volume = {1},
  number = {5},
  pages = {222-226},
  doi = {10.11648/j.sjph.20130105.16},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.sjph.20130105.16},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.sjph.20130105.16},
  abstract = {Malnutrition is one of the major problems facing the developing countries, especially among children. It is estimated that, 28% of children under the age of five are stunted whilst 14% are underweight in Ghana. Minister of Food and Agriculture in 2004 asserted that the Intelligent Quotient (IQ) of Ghanaian children has generally reduced due to poor dietary composition of their food coupled with little attention paid to good nutrition and that the nation is likely to suffer the consequences of unintelligent generation. It is against this background that this study was conducted to assess the nutritional status of Junior High School (JHS) students in the Mfantseman Municipality in the Central Region of Ghana with the objectives of estimating the body mass index (BMI) of the students through anthropometric measurements and use the BMI to determine their nutritional status as well as finding out factors contributing to their nutritional status. The study used purposive, convenient and random sampling techniques to select 7320 school children. Data was collected on the students’ age, height and weight. The Body Mass Index (BMI) for age was calculated and compared with the 2007 WHO reference to identify their nutritional status. The study revealed that overall prevalence of malnutrition in the community was high with 25.9% of the children being overweight, 5.5 and 5.8% been lean or severely lean while 39.0% were normal. The incidence of malnutrition was prevalent among boys than girls. The high incidence of malnutrition may be attributed to improper dietary habits, unawareness of balanced diet, poor prenatal nutrition and low family income.},
 year = {2013}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - Assessment of the Nutritional Status of Junior High School Students – Evidence from Mfantseman Municipality of Ghana
AU  - Kwaw Emmanuel
AU  - Sackey
AU  - Augustina Sackle
AU  - Awere
AU  - Eric
Y1  - 2013/11/20
PY  - 2013
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.sjph.20130105.16
DO  - 10.11648/j.sjph.20130105.16
T2  - Science Journal of Public Health
JF  - Science Journal of Public Health
JO  - Science Journal of Public Health
SP  - 222
EP  - 226
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2328-7950
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.sjph.20130105.16
AB  - Malnutrition is one of the major problems facing the developing countries, especially among children. It is estimated that, 28% of children under the age of five are stunted whilst 14% are underweight in Ghana. Minister of Food and Agriculture in 2004 asserted that the Intelligent Quotient (IQ) of Ghanaian children has generally reduced due to poor dietary composition of their food coupled with little attention paid to good nutrition and that the nation is likely to suffer the consequences of unintelligent generation. It is against this background that this study was conducted to assess the nutritional status of Junior High School (JHS) students in the Mfantseman Municipality in the Central Region of Ghana with the objectives of estimating the body mass index (BMI) of the students through anthropometric measurements and use the BMI to determine their nutritional status as well as finding out factors contributing to their nutritional status. The study used purposive, convenient and random sampling techniques to select 7320 school children. Data was collected on the students’ age, height and weight. The Body Mass Index (BMI) for age was calculated and compared with the 2007 WHO reference to identify their nutritional status. The study revealed that overall prevalence of malnutrition in the community was high with 25.9% of the children being overweight, 5.5 and 5.8% been lean or severely lean while 39.0% were normal. The incidence of malnutrition was prevalent among boys than girls. The high incidence of malnutrition may be attributed to improper dietary habits, unawareness of balanced diet, poor prenatal nutrition and low family income.
VL  - 1
IS  - 5
ER  -

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Author Information

Kwaw Emmanuel

Department of Hotel, Catering and Institutional Management, Cape Coast Polytechnic, Cape Coast, Ghana
Sackey
Augustina Sackle
Awere
Eric

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APA Style

Kwaw Emmanuel, Sackey, Augustina Sackle, Awere, Eric. (2013). Assessment of the Nutritional Status of Junior High School Students – Evidence from Mfantseman Municipality of Ghana. Science Journal of Public Health, 1(5), 222-226. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.sjph.20130105.16

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ACS Style

Kwaw Emmanuel; Sackey; Augustina Sackle; Awere; Eric. Assessment of the Nutritional Status of Junior High School Students – Evidence from Mfantseman Municipality of Ghana. Sci. J. Public Health 2013, 1(5), 222-226. doi: 10.11648/j.sjph.20130105.16

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AMA Style

Kwaw Emmanuel, Sackey, Augustina Sackle, Awere, Eric. Assessment of the Nutritional Status of Junior High School Students – Evidence from Mfantseman Municipality of Ghana. Sci J Public Health. 2013;1(5):222-226. doi: 10.11648/j.sjph.20130105.16

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@article{10.11648/j.sjph.20130105.16,
  author = {Kwaw Emmanuel and Sackey and Augustina Sackle and Awere and Eric},
  title = {Assessment of the Nutritional Status of Junior High School Students – Evidence from Mfantseman Municipality of Ghana},
  journal = {Science Journal of Public Health},
  volume = {1},
  number = {5},
  pages = {222-226},
  doi = {10.11648/j.sjph.20130105.16},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.sjph.20130105.16},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.sjph.20130105.16},
  abstract = {Malnutrition is one of the major problems facing the developing countries, especially among children. It is estimated that, 28% of children under the age of five are stunted whilst 14% are underweight in Ghana. Minister of Food and Agriculture in 2004 asserted that the Intelligent Quotient (IQ) of Ghanaian children has generally reduced due to poor dietary composition of their food coupled with little attention paid to good nutrition and that the nation is likely to suffer the consequences of unintelligent generation. It is against this background that this study was conducted to assess the nutritional status of Junior High School (JHS) students in the Mfantseman Municipality in the Central Region of Ghana with the objectives of estimating the body mass index (BMI) of the students through anthropometric measurements and use the BMI to determine their nutritional status as well as finding out factors contributing to their nutritional status. The study used purposive, convenient and random sampling techniques to select 7320 school children. Data was collected on the students’ age, height and weight. The Body Mass Index (BMI) for age was calculated and compared with the 2007 WHO reference to identify their nutritional status. The study revealed that overall prevalence of malnutrition in the community was high with 25.9% of the children being overweight, 5.5 and 5.8% been lean or severely lean while 39.0% were normal. The incidence of malnutrition was prevalent among boys than girls. The high incidence of malnutrition may be attributed to improper dietary habits, unawareness of balanced diet, poor prenatal nutrition and low family income.},
 year = {2013}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - Assessment of the Nutritional Status of Junior High School Students – Evidence from Mfantseman Municipality of Ghana
AU  - Kwaw Emmanuel
AU  - Sackey
AU  - Augustina Sackle
AU  - Awere
AU  - Eric
Y1  - 2013/11/20
PY  - 2013
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.sjph.20130105.16
DO  - 10.11648/j.sjph.20130105.16
T2  - Science Journal of Public Health
JF  - Science Journal of Public Health
JO  - Science Journal of Public Health
SP  - 222
EP  - 226
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2328-7950
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.sjph.20130105.16
AB  - Malnutrition is one of the major problems facing the developing countries, especially among children. It is estimated that, 28% of children under the age of five are stunted whilst 14% are underweight in Ghana. Minister of Food and Agriculture in 2004 asserted that the Intelligent Quotient (IQ) of Ghanaian children has generally reduced due to poor dietary composition of their food coupled with little attention paid to good nutrition and that the nation is likely to suffer the consequences of unintelligent generation. It is against this background that this study was conducted to assess the nutritional status of Junior High School (JHS) students in the Mfantseman Municipality in the Central Region of Ghana with the objectives of estimating the body mass index (BMI) of the students through anthropometric measurements and use the BMI to determine their nutritional status as well as finding out factors contributing to their nutritional status. The study used purposive, convenient and random sampling techniques to select 7320 school children. Data was collected on the students’ age, height and weight. The Body Mass Index (BMI) for age was calculated and compared with the 2007 WHO reference to identify their nutritional status. The study revealed that overall prevalence of malnutrition in the community was high with 25.9% of the children being overweight, 5.5 and 5.8% been lean or severely lean while 39.0% were normal. The incidence of malnutrition was prevalent among boys than girls. The high incidence of malnutrition may be attributed to improper dietary habits, unawareness of balanced diet, poor prenatal nutrition and low family income.
VL  - 1
IS  - 5
ER  -

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