ABSTRACT
Nutrient supplements are any dietary supplement that is intended to provide nutrients that may otherwise not be consumed in sufficiency. The present study seeks to assess the knowledge and practice of nutrient supplement among women of reproductive age in Ikwuano LGA, Abia State. The study was a cross sectional study, with a population which was comprised of women of childbearing age in Nigeria. The study used a multistage sampling technique to select 422 women of reproductive age from the area of the study. Data for the study were collected using a structured questionnaire which were validated by experts in the department of human nutrition and dietetics. The data realized were analyzed using descriptive statistics of frequency and percentage. The result revealed that more than half (54.3%) of the women were single, 58.8% of them attained secondary education and 54.0% were artisans. On nutrition knowledge, majority (70.6%) of the women had good nutrition knowledge. Majority (72.0%) took nutrient supplements, majority (98.1%) do so weekly, 93.8% do so because of medical reasons, 60.4% sourced the supplements from health care facilities and majority (95.7%) of them got prescriptions from doctors. On the food they consumed, 91.5% of them consumed oranges, 96.0% consumed beef, 86.3% consumed table salt and 75.8% consumed plantain. The study concluded that majority of the respondents had good knowledge towards good nutrition; however this did not translate to a good dietary practice for about half of the respondents. The study recommended that awareness of good, indigenous food cultures and dietary habits should be intensified to motivate practice.
TABLE
OF CONTENTS
Cover
Page
Title
Page i
Declaration ii
Certification iii
Dedication iv
Acknowledgment v
Table
of Contents vi
List
of Tables ix
Abstract x
CHAPTER
ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background
of the Study 1
1.2 Statement
of the Problem 4
1.3 Objectives
of the Study 4
1.4 Significance
of the Study 5
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 Understanding
the Stages Your Reproductive System Goes Through Is
Important
In Understanding These Changes in Your Body 6
2.1.1 Effect
of Reproductive Aging on Fertility 7
2.1.2 Effects
of Diet on Fertility 9
2.2 Healthy
Diet among Women of Reproductive Age 10
2.2.1 Dietary
Intake and Reproductive Life Stage of Women of Reproductive
Age 11
2.2.2 Dietary Intake Pattern and Nutritional Status of Women of
Reproductive
Age 13
2.3 Relationships
between Reproduction and Specific Nutrients 14
2.3.1 Relationships
between Nutrition and Reproduction from the
Perspectives of
Oxidation, Glycation, and Chronic Inflammation 22
2.4 Knowledge
of Women of Reproductive Age towards the Use of Nutrient
Supplement 28
2.4.1 Practice
of the Use of Nutrient
Supplement among Women Of
Reproductive Age 29
CHAPTER
THREE
MATERIALS AND METHODS
3.1 Study
Design 30
3.2 Area
of Study 30
3.3 Population
of the Study 31
3.4 Sampling
and Sampling Techniques 31
3.4.1. Sample Size 31
3.4.2 Sampling
Procedure 32
3.5 Preliminary
Activities 33
3.5.1 Preliminary Visits 33
3.5.2 Training
of Research Assistants 33
3.5.3 Informed
Consent 33
3.5.4 Ethical Approval 34
3.6 Data Collection 34
3.6.1 Questionnaire
Administration 34
3.6.2 Questionnaire
Validation 34
3.6.3 Questionnaire
Pretesting 35
3.7 Statistical
Analysis 35
Chapter four
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
4.1 Respondents’ Socio-Demographic
Characteristics 37
4.2 Nutritional Knowledge of Respondents 40
4.3 Practice of women of reproductive age
Towards the Use of Nutrient
Supplement 45
4.4 Type of Food Consumed By Women of
Reproductive Age 47
Chapter
five
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
5.1 Conclusion 50
5.2 Recommendations 50
REFERENCE
APPENDIX I
APPENDIX 2
LIST
OF TABLES
Table 4.1: Respondents’ Socio-Demographic
Characteristics 38
Table 4.2: Nutritional Knowledge of the Respondents 42
Table 4.3: Practice of women of reproductive age
Towards the Use of Nutrient
Supplement 46
CHAPTER
ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the
Study
Nutrition
is a vital component to overall wellness and health. Diet affects energy,
wellbeing and many disease states. There is a connection between lifetime
nutritional habits and the risks of many chronic diseases such as cardio
vascular diseases, diabetes and cancer. A well balanced diet can prevent such
conditions and improve energy levels and overall health and wellness (Ana et al., 2012).
Nutrition
is a critical part of health and development. Better nutrition is related to
improved infant, child and maternal health, stronger immune systems, safer
pregnancy and childbirth, lower risk of non-communicable diseases (such as
diabetes and cardiovascular disease), and longevity (WHO, 2021). People with
adequate nutrition are more productive and can create opportunities to
gradually break the cycles of poverty and hunger.
Malnutrition,
in every form, presents significant threats to human health. Today the world
faces a double burden of malnutrition that includes both undernutrition and
overweight, especially in low- and middle-income countries. WHO is providing scientific advice and
decision-making tools that can help countries take action to address all forms
of malnutrition to support health and wellbeing for all, at ages (WHO, 2021).
Nutrition
encompasses processes leading to and involved with the utilization of nutrients
for growth, development, maintenance and activity. Therefore, good nutrition is
the corner stone for, health and development of current and succeeding
generation (WHO, 2008).
Women
of reproductive age refers to all women aged 15-49 years. In some estimates
from censuses and surveys, the upper age is taken as 44 years and the last age
group is thus 40-44 years. Maternal, newborn, child & adolescent health are
known as indicators of reproductive age. It has long been recognized that the
anthropometric status of a woman at the beginning of her pregnancy influences
her pregnancy. The earliest synthesis of these data was by Kramer in 1987, and
since then, multiple reports have extended the information base. Important
characteristics of women assessed using anthropometry include height,
prepregnancy weight, and (BMI) body mass index (BMI=weight (kg)/height (m)2).
Within emergency or extremely low resource settings, mid-upper arm
circumference (MUAC) has also been recommended during pregnancy as a surrogate
for pre-pregnancy BMI. (Caulfield et al.,
2015).
It
has long been recognized that the nutritional and health status of a woman
before and/or during early pregnancy affects physiologic adjustment to
pregnancy and the condition of the pre-conceptional environment for the embryo,
and ultimately the fetal environment. Pre-conceptional problems, such as low
pre-pregnancy maternal weight, severe iodine deficiency, and folate deficiency,
negatively affect pregnancy outcomes. The recognition that early life nutrition
affects health in later years, and that in most cases the moment of conception
cannot be predicted, has led practitioners and researchers to advocate for a
life-cycle approach to nutrition (Horton and Lo, 2013). However, comprehensive
research is needed to identify optimal practices for improving the nutritional
status of adolescent girls and women, before and during pregnancy and during
lactation, both for the child and for the woman.
USAIDs
Strengthening Partnerships, Results, and Innovations in Nutrition Globally
(SPRING) project, along with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO/WHO),
have identified a need for a core set of key practices (similar to those
developed for young children), that characterize the diet and feeding practices
associated with good nutrition among adolescent girls, women, pregnant women and breastfeeding women. This
provide the relevant scientific and programmatic background to begin to address
this goal. This also summarizes existing information on the current nutritional
status of adolescent girls, women of reproductive age (WRA), and pregnant and
lactating women in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC). This represents a
fundamental first step toward identifying key principles for improving the
nutritional status of adolescent girls and women throughout their reproductive
years. The Lancet in 2013 and in The Global Burden of Disease, Injuries, and
Risk Factor study (2013).
There
is growing international consensus on the need to improve maternal nutrition
and health, focusing on the first 1,000 days in the life of a child, setting a
course for optimal growth, development, and short-term and long-term survival.
It has long been recognized that the nutritional and health status of a woman
before and/or during early pregnancy affects physiologic adjustment to
pregnancy and the condition of the per-conceptional environment for the embryo,
and ultimately the fetal environment. Per-conceptional problems, such as low
maternal pre-pregnancy weight, severe iodine deficiency, and folate deficiency,
negatively affect pregnancy outcomes, and comprehensive research is still
needed to evaluate other aspects of per-conceptional nutritional status.
Nutrition
supplementation are any dietary supplement that is intended to provide
nutrients that may otherwise not be consumed in sufficiency. Nutrition
supplementation include vitamin A , mineral, herbs, meal supplement, sport
nutrition products, natural food supplement and other related products used to
boost the nutritional content of the diet.
Dietary
supplements are products that are ingested in addition to the regular diet to
provide additional health-promoting nutrients. According to the Dietary
Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA), a dietary supplement is a product
that is intended to supplement the diet; contains dietary ingredients including
vitamins, minerals, amino acids, herbs, and botanicals; is intended to be
ingested as a pill, capsule, tablet, or liquid; and is labeled as being a
dietary supplement (ODS 2011; Ronis et al.,
2018). Dietary supplements are widely used. They are generally taken to improve
and maintain overall health. For women in particular, supplements are intended
to support bone integrity and prevent osteoporosis.
Some
women, after completing college, settling into a career, or waiting for the
right partner, find that they have problems getting pregnant due to age-related
infertility. Other women are surprised when they begin developing symptoms of
menopause, such as hot flashes, while they still feel young and healthy. It is
important to know that the reproductive system ages faster than you may
realize.
Understanding
the stages your reproductive system goes through is important in understanding
these changes in your body.
1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
Nutrition
adequacy has been a serious problem of women of reproductive age; knowing what
to eat at this period and having the money to buy have been a big challenge
over time. Therefore, the knowledge and practice of nutrition supplementation
goes a long way in improving the health status of women of reproductive age.
Moreover,
having the knowledge of what to supplement your diet with to gain the required
nutrient is very important to a particular group of people or individuals like
infants, children, adolescence and childbearing women especially to aid
delivery of their babies during pregnancy and to improve fertility rate.
1.3 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The
general objectives of this study are to assess the knowledge and practice of
nutrition supplementation among women of reproductive age in Ikwuano LGA
Specific objectives are
to:
1.
assess the personal and socio-economic characteristics of
women of reproductive age.
2.
assess the knowledge of the use of nutrient supplement among
women of reproductive age.
3.
determine the extent to which the use of nutrient supplement is
practised in the study area.
4.
determine the type of food consumed by women of reproductive
age in the study area.
1.4 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
At
the end of this research, the result obtained from this study will provide
information to the health workers such as medical doctors, dieticians, teachers
and commercial health workers in Abia state on nutrition supplement of women of
reproductive age. This work will help to tackle some nutrition related problems
that is associated with poor knowledge and practice of nutrition
supplementation and also reduce infertility rate and death rate among women of
reproductive age during pregnancy and delivering in the society. Through the
result of this research, it will help to motivate and encourage women's
interest in nutrition supplementation. This information generated from further
sensitization on supplementation and educate women of reproductive age on the importance
of knowledge and practice by the nutritionists/dietitians.
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