| dc.description.abstract | Cerebral palsy (CP) poses a significant challenge to the development of motor control and oral
motor function in children, which leads to inadequate dietary diversity. Inadequate dietary
diversity among children with CP causes malnutrition, and despite global efforts to address
malnutrition, intervention strategies often overlook children with CP. This research determined
the prevalence of inadequate dietary diversity among children with CP and identified its
associated factors.
Methods
The Socio-Ecological model was used to explore the factors influencing dietary diversity and
the study was conducted at Katalemwa Cheshire Home for Rehabilitation Services in Uganda.
A cross-sectional study design was used; quantitative data were collected from 213 caregivers
of children between 2 to 12 years. The study determined the prevalence of inadequate dietary
diversity, and the factors associated with it. Descriptive statistics, simple and multivariate
logistic regressions were used to determine the prevalence of inadequate dietary diversity and
its associated factors.
Results
The prevalence of inadequate dietary diversity was 64.8%. The prevalence was higher among
females (67.4%) than males (62.8%), and among children above 5 years (72.1%) than those
below (62.9%). Factors that were associated with inadequate dietary diversity were child being
enrolled in school (AOR=0.2, CI=0.1-0.5, P=0.001), household food security (AOR=0.1,
CI=0.1-0.3, P=0.000), and urban residence (AOR=0.4, CI=0.2-0.9, P=0.028).
Conclusion
Inadequate dietary diversity is highly prevalent among children attending KCH and it’s
associated with household food insecurity, social support system in schools that encourage
healthy feeding and limited financial resources and access to nutritious foods in rural residence | en_US |
