Household Dietary Diversity and Its Influence on Preschoolers' Nutritional Status in Tamale Metropolis, Ghana

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dc.contributor.authorNyango, WMen_US
dc.contributor.authorAlhassan, M.en_US
dc.date.accessioned2025-06-18T11:04:55Z
dc.date.available2025-06-18T11:04:55Z
dc.date.issued2025-01
dc.description.abstractIntroduction: Household dietary diversity serves as a simple indicator of various parameters that affect the nutrition of people. Food security has three important aspects (availability, access, and utilization). Household accessibility to food has also been shown to be affected by demographic and socioeconomic factors, accounting for variations in diet quality. This study aimed to determine the relationship between preschoolers’ household dietary diversity and their nutritional status in the Tamale Metropolis. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was used to obtain data from 357 caregiver-preschooler pairs from three randomly selected communities in Tamale Metropolis. Structured questionnaires were used to collect data on the demographic and nutritional status of the preschoolers. Dietary data for preschoolers and households were obtained using a single 24-hour recall method. Height and weight measurements of preschoolers were collected on anthropometric indices (weight-for-height, weight-for-age, and height-for-age). The relationships between the independent variables (household dietary diversity) and dependent variables (weight-for-age, weight-for-height, and height-for-age) were examined using the statistical analysis test to assess the strength of the relationship. The data were collected between December 2022 and January 2023. Results: The results indicated that preschoolers consumed more starchy staples than other food groups. Dairy, egg, and meat products were the least consumed. Households had a mean household dietary diversity of 6.7059 ± 1.23 out of 12 food groups, and about 84.3% of the households had minimum dietary diversity. The finding from this study showed 22.1% stunting, 7.8% wasting and 14.3% underweight. No significant relationship was found between dietary diversity and height-for-age and weight-for-height nutritional status. However, there was a significant relationship between the age of the child and being stunted (P = .00) and underweight (P = .00). Conclusion: These results show no significant relationship between household dietary diversity and preschoolers’ nutritional status. Therefore, there should be improvements in household food security, maternal knowledge of balance, and hygienic food practices.en_US
dc.identifier.affiliationsDepartment of Nutritional Sciences, School of Allied Health Sciences, University for Development Studies, P. O. Box TL 1883, Tamale, Ghanaen_US
dc.identifier.affiliationsDepartment of Social and Behavioral Change, School of Public Health, University for Development Studies, P. O. Box TL 1883, Tamale, Ghana.en_US
dc.identifier.citationNyango WM, Alhassan M.. Household Dietary Diversity and Its Influence on Preschoolers' Nutritional Status in Tamale Metropolis, Ghana . European Journal of Nutrition and Food Safety. 2025 Jan; 17(1): 96-108en_US
dc.identifier.issn2347-5641
dc.identifier.placeIndiaen_US
dc.identifier.urihttps://imsear.searo.who.int/handle/123456789/248203
dc.languageenen_US
dc.publisherMs. M. B. Mondalen_US
dc.relation.issuenumber1en_US
dc.relation.volume17en_US
dc.source.urihttps://doi.org/10.9734/ejnfs/2025/v17i11622en_US
dc.subjectPreschoolersen_US
dc.subjectdieten_US
dc.subjecthouseholden_US
dc.subjectdietary diversityen_US
dc.subjectfooden_US
dc.subjectnutritional statusen_US
dc.subjectrelationshipen_US
dc.subjectTamale Metropolisen_US
dc.titleHousehold Dietary Diversity and Its Influence on Preschoolers' Nutritional Status in Tamale Metropolis, Ghanaen_US
dc.typeJournal Articleen_US
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