Influence of Nutrition Knowledge on Healthy Food Choices among Pupils in Nyeri County, Kenya
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Date
2020-09
Authors
Runo, Waithaka Simon
Kiara, Kirimi
Mandela, Rubai
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
International Journal of Research and Scientific Innovation (IJRSI)
Abstract
: In Kenya, nutrition education is included in the school
curriculum as recommended in the year 2009 national school
health policy. Nevertheless, policy advocacy and communication
strategies on nutrition are relatively weak, and there is
insufficient focus on operational research on nutrition. In
addition, nutrition education is not taught as a standalone
subject and is only infused in science subjects. Consequently, the
malnutrition problem is not as well understood as it could be.
Modern malnutrition consists in over-consumption of energy
dense and fatty foods. These have led to an upsurge of noncommunicable and lifestyle diseases such as cancer, diabetes,
bone and heart conditions. Therefore, there was need to explore
the impact of nutrition education on eating habits in order to
help pupils acquire discriminative skills that can enable them
make healthy food choices. The pupils can act as agents of
change in the community through the symbiotic relationship that
exists between the school and the society. This will be the first
stage towards curbing the food- related health problem. The
purpose of this study was to determine the contributions of
nutrition education in enabling pupils to make healthy food
choices. The Health Belief Model as a predictor of preventive
health behaviour was the guide theory for this research. The
study was mainly descriptive in design with purposive sampling
as the key sampling technique. The target population was pupils
in Nyeri County with their teachers and parents. Data collection
tools were semi-structured interviews, and focus group
discussions, food diary, and FFQ. Data was analyzed both
qualitatively and quantitatively guided by the themes from
research objectives. Quantitative data was analyzed using basic
descriptive statistics and presented in form of tables, pie charts,
graphs, and percentages. The Qualitative analysis involved
narrative records and respondents’ quotations. The study
findings showed that nutrition education was absent from
people’s lives and healthy eating was not sustained. The study
findings may be used by the Ministry of education to inform
nutrition education content in the school curriculum.
Description
A Research Article in International Journal of Research and Scientific Innovation (IJRSI)
Keywords
Unhealthy food, Nutrition Practices, Nutrition Knowledge, Nutrition Education, Healthy food
Citation
Runo, Kirimi, Mandela (2020): Influence of Nutrition Knowledge on Healthy Food Choices among Pupils in Nyeri County, Kenya,