The Impact of Socio-economic Factors on Malnutrition in Children Under the Age of Five in Nama Subcounty, Mukono District.

Abstract

This study evaluates how changes in children's social status affect malnutrition degrees among children under 5 years old in Nama Subcounty, Mukono District, Uganda. Its goal is to cover this lacuna of local knowledge with knowledge of the factors specific to the society, culture and community that encourage seriously high rates among malnourished children in these rural communities. Research objectives include evaluating the impact of social factors (parental education, social support network); economic variables income level and employment status assessment as well as household assets; and finally culture related resources from local people including even everyday actions which impact a child's nutrition status as all of these together will decide whether we have healthy kids in Nama Subcounty who grow up well or not at all. This approach combined methods, including quantitative research based on household surveys. Qualitative insights came from the in depth interviews with (the) family members filled out their children?s health records and health workers. Qualitative insights came from those interviews and supplemented quantitative research based on household surveys. The study showed that socio-economic factors have a significant influence on child malnutrition. Low maternal education and lack of social support are associated with high levels of malnutrition in children under 5 years. The inability to obtain a reliable source of diverse, nutritional food and essential health care because of economic constraints (i.e, low income, jobless) had a significant impact on malnutrition. Community-level influences Cultural practices and of public health infrastructure availability also heavily influenced the outcome of children nutrition sheath. The research highlights the importance of adding social intervention to health measures starting at the grassroots level against disparity in wealth, health programs for the population, and culturally-supportive food education. These measures are called on the public to take in response to conclusions from research in Nama Subcounty on child malnutrition. Recommendations for future policy include searching for ways to strengthen out-of-home grouping costs vulnerable families of wealth, working to build public health infrastructures, and encouraging nutrition programs in the community. Longer-term impacts of these sorts of interventions on childhood nutritional outcomes need further study.