Okidi Lawrence, Ongeng Duncan, Muliro Patrick Simiyu, Matofari Joseph Wafula
Department of Dairy and Food Science and Technology, Egerton University, P.O. Box 536 - 20115, Egerton-Njoro, Kenya.
Department of Food Science and Postharvest Technology, Gulu University, P.O. Box 166, Gulu, Uganda.
Heliyon. 2022 Nov 19;8(11):e11703. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e11703. eCollection 2022 Nov.
Uganda is among low-income countries where induced diarrhoea still contributes significantly to children under five years (CUF) mortality. Karamoja, a sub-region characterised by three agroecologies (pastoral: PE; agro-pastoral: APE; agricultural: AE), is a geographical location that has consistently experienced a high prevalence of diarrhoea among CUF over the last decade nationally. This study examined whether agroecology influences food contamination and exposure risk to CUF. A total of 240 food samples (PE: 78; APE: 73; AE: 89) were examined for load using Xylose Lysine Deoxycholate Agar and confirmed using polymerase chain reaction targeting gene. Analysis of variance for nested design was used to compare counts among food types within and across agroecologies and means were separated using Tukey Honestly Significant Difference test at 5% (p < 0.05). Proportion of foods with load exceeding World Health Organisation (WHO) set-limit was expressed in percentage. Exposure risk of CUF was computed by multiplying quantity of food intake by load and compared to minimum infectious dose (MID) of the pathogen (3 log CFU) whereas chi-square was used to compare proportions of CUF with exposure above or below MID among agroecologies. load ranged from 0.00 ± 0.00 to 8.23 ± 1.12 log CFU but varied by food type and agroecology. aggregated load in foods from PE was significantly higher than from APE or AE (p < 0.05). The proportion of contaminated foods from PE, APE, and AE was 33-90%, 40-67%, and 17-88%, respectively. exposure risks to CUF were similar (p > 0.05) at 96%, 92%, and 91% in PE, APE, and AE, respectively. Sorghum-based foods and leafy vegetables were the predominant high-risk foods. This study has revealed that contamination of foods with high exposure risk among CUF in Karamoja sub-region varies with agroecology. Efforts to address food contamination in the sub-region should take into account agroecology.
乌干达是低收入国家之一，在这些国家，诱发性腹泻仍然是五岁以下儿童（CUF）死亡的重要原因。卡拉莫贾是一个具有三种农业生态类型（牧区：PE；农牧区：APE；农业区：AE）的次区域，在过去十年中，该国该地区五岁以下儿童腹泻的患病率一直居高不下。本研究调查了农业生态是否会影响食物污染以及五岁以下儿童的暴露风险。总共检测了240份食物样本（PE：78份；APE：73份；AE：89份），使用木糖赖氨酸脱氧胆酸盐琼脂检测负荷，并通过靶向基因的聚合酶链反应进行确认。采用嵌套设计的方差分析来比较农业生态系统内部和之间食物类型的计数，并使用Tukey真实显著性差异检验在5%的水平（p < 0.05）下分离均值。超过世界卫生组织（WHO）设定限值的食物负荷比例以百分比表示。五岁以下儿童的暴露风险通过将食物摄入量乘以负荷量来计算，并与病原体的最小感染剂量（MID，3 log CFU）进行比较，而卡方检验用于比较不同农业生态系统中暴露高于或低于MID的五岁以下儿童的比例。负荷范围为0.00 ± 0.00至8.23 ± 1.12 log CFU，但因食物类型和农业生态而异。牧区食物中的总负荷显著高于农牧区或农业区（p < 0.05）。来自牧区、农牧区和农业区的受污染食物比例分别为33 - 90%、40 - 67%和17 - 88%。五岁以下儿童在牧区、农牧区和农业区的暴露风险分别为96%、92%和91%，差异不显著（p > 0.05）。以高粱为基础的食物和叶菜类蔬菜是主要的高风险食物。本研究表明，卡拉莫贾次区域五岁以下儿童中具有高暴露风险的食物污染因农业生态而异。该次区域应对食物污染的努力应考虑到农业生态。
