Assessing dietary adequacy and temporal variability in the context of Covid-19 among Indigenous and rural communities in Kanungu District, Uganda: a mixed-methods study
Dietary adequacy is hard to achieve for many people living in low-income countries, who suffer from nutritional deficiencies. Climate change, which alters weather conditions, has combined with other cascading and compound events to disrupt Indigenous communities’ food systems, limiting the consumpti...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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IOP Publishing
2023-01-01
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| Series: | Environmental Research: Health |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1088/2752-5309/acd6b0 |
| _version_ | 1797698931181748224 |
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| author | G Scarpa L Berrang-Ford S Twesigomwe P Kakwangire M Galazoula C Zavaleta-Cortijo K Patterson D B Namanya S Lwasa E Ninshaba M Kiconco IHACC Research Team J E Cade |
| author_facet | G Scarpa L Berrang-Ford S Twesigomwe P Kakwangire M Galazoula C Zavaleta-Cortijo K Patterson D B Namanya S Lwasa E Ninshaba M Kiconco IHACC Research Team J E Cade |
| author_sort | G Scarpa |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Dietary adequacy is hard to achieve for many people living in low-income countries, who suffer from nutritional deficiencies. Climate change, which alters weather conditions, has combined with other cascading and compound events to disrupt Indigenous communities’ food systems, limiting the consumption of adequate diets. The aim of this work was to conduct a proof-of-concept study exploring dietary adequacy, and to investigate evidence for temporal variation in the dietary intake of Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities in Kanungu District, Uganda in the context of the Covid-19 outbreak. We randomly selected 60 participants (20 mothers, 20 fathers and 20 children aged between 6 and 23 months) from two Indigenous Batwa and two Bakiga settlements. A mixed-methods study with concurrent qualitative and quantitative data collection was conducted. Monthly dietary intake data were collected from each participant from February to July 2021 through 24 h recall surveys using a specially developed Ugandan food composition database included in the online tool myfood24. At the same time, we also collected: (i) demographic and contextual data related to Covid-19; (ii) data on weather and seasonality; (iii) data on the perception of dietary intake over the year, and during the Covid-19 period; (iv) baseline anthropometric measurements. The majority of the participants did not achieve nutrient adequacy over the 6 months period, and household dietary diversity scores were generally low. Pregnant and lactating women consumed a diet which was severely inadequate in terms of nutrient consumption. Caloric and nutrient intake varied over the 6 months period, with the highest food consumption in June and lowest in April. Temporal variation was more evident among Batwa participants. Vitamin A intake varied more over months than other nutrients in adults’ and children’s diets, and none met iodine requirements. Participants characterised the diverse mechanisms by which season and weather variability determined the type and amount of food consumed each month. Dietary intake showed indications of temporal variation that differed between nutrients. Also, they reported that the Covid-19 pandemic influenced their diet. During lockdown, 58% of adults reported changing dietary habits by consuming less—and less nutritious—foods. The findings of this work highlight that the majority of the Batwa and Bakiga participants did not meet the dietary requirements for their age and gender. Also, our research indicates that weather patterns and seasonality may cause variations in smallholder food production with consequences on households’ dietary intake. Emerging evidence suggests that nutrients and caloric intake vary monthly and under different weather conditions. Accurate and time-varying nutrition evaluations would help in identifying seasonal and monthly dietary needs, supporting preventive interventions protecting children and their parents from any form of malnutrition. Consideration of time-varying nutritional intake will become increasingly important as climate change affects the seasonality and availability of smallholder subsistence crops. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T04:00:26Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-30e8360f054f46c6be127acbf6720498 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2752-5309 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T04:00:26Z |
| publishDate | 2023-01-01 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Environmental Research: Health |
| spelling | doaj.art-30e8360f054f46c6be127acbf67204982023-09-03T11:34:25ZengIOP PublishingEnvironmental Research: Health2752-53092023-01-011202500810.1088/2752-5309/acd6b0Assessing dietary adequacy and temporal variability in the context of Covid-19 among Indigenous and rural communities in Kanungu District, Uganda: a mixed-methods studyG Scarpa0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4810-4293L Berrang-Ford1https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9216-8035S Twesigomwe2P Kakwangire3M Galazoula4C Zavaleta-Cortijo5K Patterson6D B Namanya7S Lwasa8https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4312-2836E Ninshaba9M Kiconco10IHACC Research Team11J E Cade12School of Environment, University of Leeds , Leeds, United Kingdom; School of Food Science and Nutrition, University of Leeds , Leeds, United KingdomSchool of Food Science and Nutrition, University of Leeds , Leeds, United KingdomIndigenous Health Adaptation to Climate Change Research Team , Kanungu District, Buhoma, UgandaIndigenous Health Adaptation to Climate Change Research Team , Kanungu District, Buhoma, UgandaLeeds Institute for Data Analytics, University of Leeds , Leeds, United KingdomFacultad de Salud Publica y Administracion, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia , Lima, PeruDepartment of Population Medicine, University of Guelph , Guelph, CanadaIndigenous Health Adaptation to Climate Change Research Team , Kanungu District, Buhoma, Uganda; Ministry of Health , Kampala, UgandaIndigenous Health Adaptation to Climate Change Research Team , Kanungu District, Buhoma, Uganda; Department of Geography, Makerere University , Kampala, Uganda; The Global Center on Adaptation , Rotterdam, The NetherlandsIndigenous Health Adaptation to Climate Change Research Team , Kanungu District, Buhoma, UgandaIndigenous Health Adaptation to Climate Change Research Team , Kanungu District, Buhoma, UgandaIndigenous Health Adaptation to Climate Change Research Team , Kanungu District, Buhoma, UgandaSchool of Food Science and Nutrition, University of Leeds , Leeds, United KingdomDietary adequacy is hard to achieve for many people living in low-income countries, who suffer from nutritional deficiencies. Climate change, which alters weather conditions, has combined with other cascading and compound events to disrupt Indigenous communities’ food systems, limiting the consumption of adequate diets. The aim of this work was to conduct a proof-of-concept study exploring dietary adequacy, and to investigate evidence for temporal variation in the dietary intake of Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities in Kanungu District, Uganda in the context of the Covid-19 outbreak. We randomly selected 60 participants (20 mothers, 20 fathers and 20 children aged between 6 and 23 months) from two Indigenous Batwa and two Bakiga settlements. A mixed-methods study with concurrent qualitative and quantitative data collection was conducted. Monthly dietary intake data were collected from each participant from February to July 2021 through 24 h recall surveys using a specially developed Ugandan food composition database included in the online tool myfood24. At the same time, we also collected: (i) demographic and contextual data related to Covid-19; (ii) data on weather and seasonality; (iii) data on the perception of dietary intake over the year, and during the Covid-19 period; (iv) baseline anthropometric measurements. The majority of the participants did not achieve nutrient adequacy over the 6 months period, and household dietary diversity scores were generally low. Pregnant and lactating women consumed a diet which was severely inadequate in terms of nutrient consumption. Caloric and nutrient intake varied over the 6 months period, with the highest food consumption in June and lowest in April. Temporal variation was more evident among Batwa participants. Vitamin A intake varied more over months than other nutrients in adults’ and children’s diets, and none met iodine requirements. Participants characterised the diverse mechanisms by which season and weather variability determined the type and amount of food consumed each month. Dietary intake showed indications of temporal variation that differed between nutrients. Also, they reported that the Covid-19 pandemic influenced their diet. During lockdown, 58% of adults reported changing dietary habits by consuming less—and less nutritious—foods. The findings of this work highlight that the majority of the Batwa and Bakiga participants did not meet the dietary requirements for their age and gender. Also, our research indicates that weather patterns and seasonality may cause variations in smallholder food production with consequences on households’ dietary intake. Emerging evidence suggests that nutrients and caloric intake vary monthly and under different weather conditions. Accurate and time-varying nutrition evaluations would help in identifying seasonal and monthly dietary needs, supporting preventive interventions protecting children and their parents from any form of malnutrition. Consideration of time-varying nutritional intake will become increasingly important as climate change affects the seasonality and availability of smallholder subsistence crops.https://doi.org/10.1088/2752-5309/acd6b0temporal variationdietary intakedietary adequacyCovid-19Indigenous peoplesyoung children |
| spellingShingle | G Scarpa L Berrang-Ford S Twesigomwe P Kakwangire M Galazoula C Zavaleta-Cortijo K Patterson D B Namanya S Lwasa E Ninshaba M Kiconco IHACC Research Team J E Cade Assessing dietary adequacy and temporal variability in the context of Covid-19 among Indigenous and rural communities in Kanungu District, Uganda: a mixed-methods study Environmental Research: Health temporal variation dietary intake dietary adequacy Covid-19 Indigenous peoples young children |
| title | Assessing dietary adequacy and temporal variability in the context of Covid-19 among Indigenous and rural communities in Kanungu District, Uganda: a mixed-methods study |
| title_full | Assessing dietary adequacy and temporal variability in the context of Covid-19 among Indigenous and rural communities in Kanungu District, Uganda: a mixed-methods study |
| title_fullStr | Assessing dietary adequacy and temporal variability in the context of Covid-19 among Indigenous and rural communities in Kanungu District, Uganda: a mixed-methods study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Assessing dietary adequacy and temporal variability in the context of Covid-19 among Indigenous and rural communities in Kanungu District, Uganda: a mixed-methods study |
| title_short | Assessing dietary adequacy and temporal variability in the context of Covid-19 among Indigenous and rural communities in Kanungu District, Uganda: a mixed-methods study |
| title_sort | assessing dietary adequacy and temporal variability in the context of covid 19 among indigenous and rural communities in kanungu district uganda a mixed methods study |
| topic | temporal variation dietary intake dietary adequacy Covid-19 Indigenous peoples young children |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1088/2752-5309/acd6b0 |
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