Kukeba Margaret Wekem, Fallon Debbie, Callery Peter
Department of Paediatric Nursing, University for Development Studies, Tamale, Northern Region, Ghana.
CKT University for Technology and Applied Sciences, Navrongo, Upper East Region, Ghana.
Matern Child Nutr. 2021 Apr;17(2):e13085. doi: 10.1111/mcn.13085. Epub 2020 Oct 1.
A child's diet should be composed of appropriate nutrients to achieve optimal nutritional status, and though there is a substantial evidence base for child feeding recommendations, developing countries continue to face challenges regarding optimal child feeding. This paper describes an ethnographic study undertaken in rural northern Ghana to explore community perceptions of what 'counts' as food for children and the impact this had on the nutrients they received. Fifteen households with children under 5 years were purposively selected. In-depth interviews were held with 25 mothers, 7 fathers and 8 grandparents within these households as well as 2 diviners. Participant observations were also undertaken. Findings show that satiety rather than nutrition was the key consideration in adult choices about a child's diet. The community regarded carbohydrate-based meals as food, but considered protein, vitamins and mineral-based foods as nonessential elements of a child's diet, and important sources of these nutrients were regarded as treats.
儿童的饮食应包含适当的营养成分，以实现最佳营养状况。尽管有大量关于儿童喂养建议的证据基础，但发展中国家在实现最佳儿童喂养方面仍面临挑战。本文描述了在加纳北部农村进行的一项人种学研究，以探讨社区对儿童“食物”的认知以及这对他们所摄入营养的影响。有目的地挑选了15个有5岁以下儿童的家庭。对这些家庭中的25位母亲、7位父亲、8位祖父母以及2位占卜师进行了深入访谈。还进行了参与观察。研究结果表明，饱腹感而非营养是成年人选择儿童饮食的关键考虑因素。社区将以碳水化合物为主的餐食视为食物，但将蛋白质、维生素和矿物质类食物视为儿童饮食中的非必需元素，而这些营养素的重要来源则被视为零食。
