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Title:	Factors associated with nutritional status and cognitive development in Vietnamese children under five years old
Authors:	Nguyen Tu Ha (P55573)
Supervisor:	Poh Bee Koon, Prof. Dr.
Keywords:	Child nutrition - Vietnam Child nutrition
Issue Date:	19-Feb-2013
Description:	Vietnam has one of the highest prevalence of malnourished children in the world, however there is not enough evidence to show cognitive development status in Vietnamese children. The main aim of this study was to determine the association between nutritional status and cognitive development, and other related factors among Vietnamese children aged 6 months to 5 years old in rural and urban areas of three regions in Vietnam. A total of 891 subjects were selected through multistage sampling. Data collected included weight, height, body mass index (BMI), hemoglobin level and food consumption, as well as cognitive assessment based on the Ages and Stages Questionnaire (ASQ). In addition, a qualitative study was conducted to support the evidence for the factors contributing to nutritional status and cognitive development through in-depth interviews, focus group discussion and observations. Mean Z-scores for weight-for-age, height-for-age and weight-for-height were -0.52, -0.74 and -0.16, respectively. Mean Z-scores of weight-for-age, weight-for-height, BMI-for-age were significantly lower (p<0.01) in the low ASQ group as compared to their normal ASQ counterparts. The proportion of anemia was 23.8%, and was significantly higher (p<0.05) in rural areas than in urban areas. There were 68.6% of children with low ASQ score. Percentage protein intake was significantly lower (p<0.05) in the low-ASQ group compared to the normal-ASQ group. Risk factors for malnutrition status were low birth weight, anemia, and lack of energy intake. Under-nourishment of children was affected by socio-economic factors including parents’ low income, having more than two siblings, parental education to secondary school level or less, and parental profession as non-salaried employees. From the qualitative study, it was noted that food decisions had an effect on the balance of dietary intake because children’s food were cooked with little or no vegetables and protein foods. Most mothers, health workers and community leaders felt that the living environment and economic conditions caused families to spend less time looking after their children, which led to slow cognitive development of the babies. In conclusion, nutrition-related factors affecting cognitive development status are malnutrition, anemia and inadequate protein in the diet. Lack of time or care and attention for children was the main reason for cognitive under-development that leads to slow progress in learning. Based on these findings, further quantitative research is needed to study the lifestyle and eating habits that contributing to cognitive development.,Master / Sarjana
Pages:	185
Call Number:	WS115.N576f 2013 9 tesis
Publisher:	UKM, Kuala Lumpur
Appears in Collections:	Faculty of Health Sciences / Fakulti Sains Kesihatan

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