Ugochukwu Ef, Onubogu Cu, Edokwe Es, Okeke Kn
Department of Pediatrics, Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, Nnewi, Nigeria.
Ann Med Health Sci Res. 2014 Jul;4(Suppl 2):S108-14. doi: 10.4103/2141-9248.138024.
Lunch packs play a significant role in the nutritional status and academic performance of school children. Available data show a high prevalence of malnutrition among school-age children.
The aim of this study is to document the nutritional contents of lunch packs of primary school children in Nnewi, Anambra state, Nigeria.
A cross-sectional study was conducted among 1018 primary 1-6 pupils selected by stratified systematic random sampling from six primary schools, two each of private, - mission, - and government (public) - owned schools in Nnewi metropolis with the aid of the semi-structured questionnaire. Lunch packs of the pupils were examined.
Majority of the pupils (77.8% [792/1018]) had lunch packs although about half of pupils in public schools had no lunch pack. Only 12.4% (98/792) and 19.2% (152/792) of pupils with lunch packs had balanced meals and fruits/vegetables in their lunch packs, respectively. The odds of not coming to school with packed lunch was about 13 and 12 times higher for mothers with no formal education or only primary education, respectively, compared with those with tertiary education. Type of school had a strong influence on possession and contents of lunch pack (χ(2) = 2.88, P < 0.001, phi coefficient = 0.72). Pupils in private (97.5% [198/203]) and mission (94.4% [388/411]) schools were more likely to have a lunch pack compared with public schools (51.0% [206/404]). However, pupils in private schools were most likely to have a balanced meal (32.5% [66/203] vs. 5.8% [24/411] in mission and 2.0% [8/404] in public schools) and fruits/vegetables (48.3% [98/203] vs. 10.2% [42/411] in mission and 3.0% [12/404] in public schools) in their lunch packs. Mothers' educational status and parents' occupation were significantly associated with lunch pack contents.
Majority of the lunch packs of primary school pupils contain poor quality food especially in public schools. Mother's educational status and parent's occupation are important determinants of the nutritional contents of lunch packs.
午餐包对学童的营养状况和学业成绩起着重要作用。现有数据显示学龄儿童营养不良的患病率很高。
本研究的目的是记录尼日利亚阿南布拉州纽维市小学生午餐包的营养成分。
采用分层系统随机抽样法，从纽维市六所小学（私立、教会和政府公立学校各两所）选取1018名小学一至六年级学生进行横断面研究，借助半结构化问卷进行调查。对学生的午餐包进行检查。
大多数学生（77.8%[792/1018]）有午餐包，不过公立学校约有一半学生没有午餐包。有午餐包的学生中，只有12.4%（98/792）的学生午餐包中有均衡膳食，19.2%（152/792）的学生午餐包中有水果/蔬菜。与受过高等教育的母亲相比，未受过正规教育或仅受过小学教育的母亲让孩子不带午餐包上学的几率分别高出约13倍和12倍。学校类型对午餐包的拥有情况和内容有很大影响（χ(2)=2.88，P<0.001，phi系数=0.72）。私立学校（97.5%[198/203]）和教会学校（94.4%[388/411]）的学生比公立学校（51.0%[206/404]）的学生更有可能有午餐包。然而，私立学校的学生午餐包中最有可能有均衡膳食（32.5%[66/203]，教会学校为5.8%[24/411]，公立学校为2.0%[8/404]）和水果/蔬菜（48.3%[98/203]，教会学校为10.2%[42/411]，公立学校为3.0%[12/404]）。母亲的教育程度和父母的职业与午餐包内容显著相关。
小学生的大多数午餐包所含食物质量较差，尤其是在公立学校。母亲的教育程度和父母的职业是午餐包营养成分的重要决定因素。
