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UPV Theses and Dissertations

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    Household food security and nutritional status of preschoolers in Valderrama, Antique
    Braga, Mayet Ann D.; Gordon, Cyrus John G.; Guisihan, Thanz Pamela G., II; Jamili, JC John T.; Ledesma, Migil G.; Lim, Diana L.; Lim, Lenny Joy G.; Malalu-an, Rosalie A. (Division of Biological Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences, University of the Philippines Visayas, 2005-03)
    The study is a cross-sectional survey of 138 randomly selected households from ten (10) similarly randomly-selected barangays in Valderrama, Antique. This study aims to determine household food security and nutritional status of pre-schoolers in Valderrama, Antique. The study specifically aimed to: determine the status of household food security in Valderrama, Antique; describe the characteristics of households in terms of Age and Highest Educational Attainment of Caretakers, Annual Family Income (in Pesos), Income Allotment for Food, House Ownership, Number of Household Members and Food Source; and compare the nutritional status of pre-schoolers of food secure and food insecure households based on the following anthropometric parameters: Weight for age (WFA), Height / length for age (H/LFA) and Weight for height (WFH). The study is patterned after the national survey done by the Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI) that ranked Antique as the province with the highest degree of malnutrition. Food security was determined using the Food-Security/Hunger Core Module, 3-Stage Design, with Screeners. Anthropometric measurements were taken from randomly selected preschoolers aged 0-5 from each household to determine the nutritional status. The current study revealed that the prevalence of food insecurity in Valderrama, Antique is very high at 94.9%. The level of food insecurity was further determined and the following results were obtained: 17.6% of the food insecure households were without hunger; 56.5% were the food insecure households were without hunger; 56.5% were food insecure with moderate hunger, and, 26.0% were food insecure with severe hunger. Only 5.1% of the households surveyed were food secure. The results showed that in terms of the anthropometric parameters used in the study (Weight for Age, Height for Age, Weight for Height), all pre-schoolers in food secure households were normal. On the other hand, in food insecure households, the prevalence of underweight, stunting and wasting were high. Using the parameter Weight-For-Age (WFA), the prevalence of underweight children was 38.2%, which is higher than the national average of 27.6%. Using the Height-for-Age (HFA), 43.5% of pre-schoolers in the area were stunted (underheight) and which is again higher than the national average of 38.5%. The prevalence of wasting in the study was alarmingly high (14.5%) which is almost three times higher than the national average of 5.5%. The results obtained may be used as baseline data in planning intervention programs by the municipal government and concerned agencies (Government Organizations and Non-Government Organizations) to address the alarming problem of malnutrition in the municipality.
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    Ascariasis and protein energy malnutrition among schoolchildren of Monteclaro Elementary School, Miag-ao, Iloilo
    Berlin, Nellisa Marie; Chua, Enrique III; Daquilenea, Miko; Dorde, Cristy Joy; Hosillos, Juls; Libo-on, Dyann Dolour; Panizales, Katherine Royce; Robleza, Xela Patricia; Sanchez, Maria Lourdes; Sumayo, Marilyn (Division of Biological Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences, University of the Philippines Visayas, 2008-04)
    Ascaris infections lead to malnutrition and poor cognitive development especially to children aged 5-15 years of age. In the Philippines, protein-energy malnutrition is one of the ten leading causes of child mortality. From January to February 2008, a cross- sectional descriptive study was carried out in Monteclaro Elementary School to describe the prevalence of ascariasis and the prevalence of protein energy malnutrition and relate it to the demographic factors such as age group, educational attainment of the mother, annual family income, availability of toilet, and proper hand washing practice. Sixty eight pupils of the said school were included in the study with ages ranging from 6-13 years. Fecal sample of the participants were collected, processed using the Kato-Katz smear technique, and microscopically examined to determine the prevalence of infections. The weight was measured for weight for age index. A self administered questionnaire was given to know about socio-economic factors. Handwashing activities were utilized as a basis for personal hygiene. The result of the study shows that 12% of the study population has a mild A. lumbricoides infection. Weight for age measurement shows that 21% of the pupils are underweight. Pupils of the age group 12-14 were of the highest frequency of ascaris infection and pupils of the age group of 6-8 were of the lowest frequency. Twelve percent of pupils who have toilets in their household are positive for ascaris infection. All pupils failed in the handwashing activity. Twenty seven percent of the pupils whose mothers have no formal education were underweight. This is due to the level of education that the mother has achieved. Mothers who have undergone tertiary education know more about the proper ways to nourish their children thereby minimizing children who are underweight. Twenty-three percent of the pupils included in the study were below normal in the weight for age index. Trend shows that those families with lower income have a higher frequency of respondents that are underweight. For pupils with below normal weight for age 50% are without toilet while 19% with toilet. There is low prevalence of ascariasis in Monteclaro Elementary School. The results of this study do not truly show the relationship of ascariasis with protein energy malnutrition. Inconsistencies of the results with the findings of other studies are possibly due to low number of positive ascaris-infected participants and the low number of overall participants. Increase in the sample size and ascariasis positive participants within the sample are recommended to get more accurate results.