Gebre Girma Gezimu, Chefebo Derebe Ermias, Kacharo Deribe Kaske
Faculty of Environment, Gender and Development Studies, Hawassa University, Hawassa, Ethiopia.
The Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) Postdoctoral Research Fellowship Program, Ritsumeikan University, Kyoto, 603-8577, Japan.
BMC Nutr. 2023 Nov 14;9(1):130. doi: 10.1186/s40795-023-00791-0.
Despite a large body of literature on the nexus between knowledge, attitude and practice towards nutrition and gender, this nexus is likely to vary and is not clear in many societies, such as Ethiopia.
The study aimed to analyze the level of gender-based knowledge, attitude, and practice towards malnutrition and micronutrient deficiency using primary data collected from two regional states in Ethiopia.
Qualitative and quantitative data collection approaches were used. Qualitative data were analyzed using a narrative and content approach. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics.
Results indicate that female are generally more adept than male at identifying the symptoms of malnutrition. However, concerning vitamin A and iodine food types and its deficiency, male respondents had relatively better knowledge and consumption practice than female. Results show that there is very little awareness about biofortified and fortified foods. When we rate respondents, male had a relatively better understanding about fortified foods than their female counterparts.
Findings can support development agents working to improve nutrition in Ethiopia to focus on improving community knowledge and perception of biofortified and fortified foods to improve diet quality through increased micronutrient intake. The majority of the respondents were aware of the importance of consuming micronutrient rich foods and had a positive attitude towards them. However, there is still a gap in practice. It may therefore require more targeted campaigns to increase the ability of community members to adopt best practices while reducing barriers to consumption of nutritious diet.
尽管有大量关于营养与性别方面的知识、态度和实践之间联系的文献，但这种联系在许多社会中可能存在差异且并不明确，比如埃塞俄比亚。
本研究旨在利用从埃塞俄比亚两个地区州收集的原始数据，分析基于性别的营养不良和微量营养素缺乏方面的知识、态度及实践水平。
采用定性和定量数据收集方法。定性数据采用叙事和内容分析法进行分析。定量数据采用描述性统计方法进行分析。
结果表明，女性通常比男性更善于识别营养不良的症状。然而，在维生素A和碘的食物类型及其缺乏方面，男性受访者的知识和消费实践相对比女性更好。结果显示，对生物强化食品和强化食品的认知非常少。当对受访者进行评分时，男性对强化食品的理解相对比女性更好。
研究结果可为致力于改善埃塞俄比亚营养状况的发展机构提供支持，使其专注于提高社区对生物强化食品和强化食品的认知及理解，通过增加微量营养素摄入量来改善饮食质量。大多数受访者意识到食用富含微量营养素食物的重要性，并对其持积极态度。然而，在实践方面仍存在差距。因此，可能需要开展更有针对性的宣传活动，以提高社区成员采用最佳实践的能力，同时减少食用营养饮食的障碍。
