ABSTRACT
Family support resources are programs set-up by government or other stakeholders so as to help families or individual with limited resources. In Nigeria, such support resources have taken different shapes since independence however little study have been carried out to ascertain their effect on nutrition and health status of the beneficiaries especially women. The study evaluated family support resources and nutritional status of women in Njikoka Local Government area of Anambra state using cross-sectional survey design. The study population comprised of 355 women from the study location, which were randomly selected. The study used a structured questionnaire to collect data on Demographic and socio-economic status, feeding habitand family support resources present in the area. Nutritional status was determined using anthropometric indices such as weight, height, body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC) and waist-hip-ratio (WHR). The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The study found that more than half (54.1%) of the women were single, majority (88.2%) were Christians, most (42.3%) live alone, there primary occupation were civil service (33.0%) and trading (30.1%), there highest educational level was tertiary education (57.2%) and their monthly income were from N21,000 and above (33.2%). The study further revealed that most (66.8%) received support from relatives. The most benefited government support program was the Npower program (58.6%) and the NDE empowerment program (27.6%). On feeding habits, majority (62.8%) skipped meals while majority (80.0%) consumed snacks, majority (42.5%) eat three times daily and most (33.8%) consume fruits only 2 times daily. The result on nutritional status showed that 23.6% of the women were overweight and 9.5% were obese, while 66.2% were at the risk of overweight and obesity. The result showed that income was significantly related to BMI while traditional ruler support was negatively related to waist-hip-ratio (WHR) and waist circumference (WC). The study recommends that government should ensure that the available family support resources/programmes are adequately implemented to ensure that they get to the women and households that need them.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TITLE PAGE i
CERTIFICATION ii
DEDICATION iii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT iv
TABLE OF CONTENT v
LIST OF TABLES vii
ABSTRACT viii
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION 1
1.1 Statement of the Problem. 4
1.2 Objectives of the Study 5
1.3 Significance of the Study 5
CHAPTER 2
LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 Family support resources 6
2.1.1 History 6
2.1.2 Types of Family Support Resources/Programs
in Nigeria 9
2.2 Health and Nutritional Status of Women 20
2.2.1 Malnutrition among Women 24
2.2.2 Reproductive Health 25
CHAPTER 3
MATERIALS AND METHODS
3.1 Study Design 29
3.2 Area of Study 29
3.3 Population of the Study 29
3.4 Sampling and Sampling Technique 30
3.4.1 Sample Size 30
3.4.2 Sampling Procedure 31
3.5 Preliminary Activities 31
3.5.1 Preliminary visit 31
3.5.2 Training of research assistant 31
3.5.3 Ethical approval 32
3.5.4 Informed Consent 32
3.6 Data Collection 32
3.6.1 Questionnaire Construction 32
3.6.2 Questionnaire validation 32
3.6.3 Questionnaire pretesting 32
3.6.4 Questionnaire Administration 33
3.6.5 Anthropometric measurement 33
3.6.6 Dietary measurement 34
3.7 Data Analysis 34
3.8 Statistical Analysis 35
CHAPTER FOUR
RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
4.1 Socio-Economic and Demographic Characteristics of Some
Selected Women 36
4.2 Family Support Resources Available to the Study Population 40
4.3 Feeding Habits of the Respondents 43
4.4 Nutritional Status of the Respondents 50
CHAPTER 5
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION
5.1 Conclusion 54
5.2 Recommendations 55
References 63
Appendixes 69
LIST OF TABLES
Table 4.1: Socio-Economic and Demographic Characteristics of the Respondents 38
Table 4.2: Family Support Resources Available to the Study Population 42
Table 4.3: Feeding Habits of the Respondents 46
Table 4.4: Anthropometric Status of the Respondents 51
Table 4.5: Relationship between the Available Family Support Resources, Socio-economic and Anthropometric Status of the Respondents 53
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
1.0 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
The nutritional status of women before, during and after pregnancy contributes a great deal to their own well-being and that of their children and other household members. The dual role of women as mothers and productive workers compromised by poor diets and ill health, affect not only their well-being but that of the whole family as well. A heavy workload may push a woman with marginal food intake into a state of malnutrition (Bryce, 2008).The nutrition of women is a critical part of their overall health status. It is related to among other things, food intake during their lifetime, the nourishment they received before birth, their energy output and work load, their power over resources for household food security, and their roles in the food chain. Poor diet, frequent acute and chronic infections, repeated pregnancies, prolonged lactation and a heavy burden of work may all contribute to serious physiological depletion and sometimes to overt malnutrition. In many countries, young women in their late teens appear hearty, healthy and attractive, but only ten or fifteen years later, they appear prematurely old, tired and unhealthy (Latham, 2007).
Malnutrition is one of the most important health problems among women in developing countries. It is usually a result of a combination of inadequate dietary intake and infection. Inadequate food intake is a consequence of insufficient food available at the household level, improper feeding practices, or both. Feeding practices include both the quality and quantity of foods taken by the individual (Ajieroh, 2011). Poor sanitation puts women at increased risk of illness, which affects their nutritional status. Both inadequate food intake and poor environmental conditions reflect underlying social and economic conditions. The majority of the population in developing countries is dependent on agriculture to supply their food needs and to provide income with which to supplement their subsistence production. The contributing factors are poor purchasing power, faulty feeding habits, large family size, frequent infections, poor health care, inadequate sanitation, and low agricultural production (Baraka, 2005). Population living in the backward and drought-prone rural areas and urban slums and those belonging to the socially backward groups such as scheduled castes and tribal communities are highly susceptible to under nutrition. Malnutrition has significant health and economic consequences (Ransom & Elder, 2003). The most serious of which is increased a risk of death. Other outcomes include an increased risk of illnesses and a reduction in workers’ productivity and increased absenteeism in the workplace; these reduce a person’s lifetime earning potential and ability to contribute to the national economy. In women of reproductive age, malnutrition can result in adverse pregnancy outcomes. At least 120 million women in less developed countries are underweight (Müller & Krawinkel, 2005).
The health status and practices, educational, and socioeconomic status of women have serious implications on their nutritional status. The quality of nutrition available depends on the availability of the resources at the household level such as; Education and knowledge, physical and mental health, time, autonomy, and social support, as well as family economic resources, which are scares and most times unavailable to families except through family support programs (Haseen, 2006).Family support has a potentially large set of meanings. It obviously has a relationship to family policy, which is normally conceived to encompass income support, services and leave from employment for child-related and family purposes. Family support includes some of these functions but is more precisely defined as a service oriented to the relational well-being and functioning of children and families (Pinkerton, Dolan & Canavan, 2004). Applied in a social work or social problem setting, the overriding goal of family support is to promote the welfare of children and other family members by making available a range of supportive resources, including formal and informal support. Family support is underpinned by a systemic orientation in which internal and external family relationships are seen as closely linked. A defining characteristic of family support is a focus on the strengths as against the deficits of families and a recognition of families’ capacity to define and respond to their own needs, provided they have the necessary support (Pinkerton, 2004).
Family support in different countries most often takes the form of services targeted to families in particular types of situation. These include families considered at risk of social exclusion or in marginalized sectors of the population; those where the women and children have special needs (such as a disability of some kind); those where the women and children are considered to be subject to some kind of risk (such as violence, neglect or abandonment); or where women and children are in need of kinship care due to widowed/orphanhood or HIV/AIDS. As a service or set of services, family support takes a number of forms. One is the equivalent of classic social casework services. These are most commonly services to deal with or avert family-related difficulties or problems, and in some settings to sustain the family/home in a given environment. While these services are well developed in the high-income countries, they are relatively new in others. This study therefore is set to evaluate family support resources available to families in Njikoka Local Government area of Anambra state, and its implication on the nutritional status of women living in the area, which is expected to through more light on the relationship between family support and nutritional status of women in developing countries like Nigeria.
1.1 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
Nutritional status is a measure of dietary intake/pattern and is a predictor of health status of every individual. Access to quality food and at the right time is the sole right of every human. Women in the society are saddled with a lot of responsibilities ranging from child rearing to care giving as well as home making and for this duties to be discharged appropriately, women must be healthy and good health is mostly predicted by adequate nutrition. On the other hand, poor nutrition comes with serious health consequences and illnesses.
Women in developing countries face a lot of nutritional problems (Tinker & Koblinsky, 2003). These problems negatively influence the health and well-being of women and their children. For instance, in Nigeria it is estimated that 11% of women are undernourished, overweight and obesity is 25% (International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF), 2014). Nutritional deficiencies pose a serious health concern not only because they are a direct cause of illness but also because poor nutritional status inhibits the proper functioning of the immune system, thereby increasing susceptibility to other diseases.
In a bid to solve this problem, government have come up with various family support programs in other to help families maintain a minimal source of livelihood that will provide opportunity for access to food, clothing and shelter. However irrespective of this effort, the nutritional status of people living in rural areas keep dropping by 2.2% on a yearly basis in Nigeria (WHO, 2015). It is on this backdrop that this study is poised to evaluate family support resources and nutritional status of women in Njikoka Local Government area of Anambra state.
1.2 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The general objective of this study is to evaluate family support resources and nutritional status of women in Njikoka Local Government area of Anambra state. The specific objectives are to:
1. determine the socio-economic and demographic characteristics of some selected women in Njikoka L.G.A of Anambra state,
2. identify the family support resources available to the study population
3. assess the nutritional status of the study population
4. ascertain the relationship between the available family support resources and socio-economic data and nutritional status of the women
1.3 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
This study on the relationship between family support resources, and nutritional status of women, which will be relevant in providing data to the Ministry of Health, policy makers and all stakeholders necessary for designing interventions that can enhance the usefulness of family support programs as well as strive to cover the gray areas in such programs.
The study will expose the nutritional status of Women in a typical Nigerian setting and as such will aid government, nutritionist and health care workers to device means to improve the nutritional status of women especially in developing countries like Nigeria.
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