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CHAPTER FOUR

RESULTS

4.1 Introduction

This chapter presents and describes the study results using tables, figures and text data was collected from 30 respondents using a questionnaire

n stands for frequency.

4.2 Socio-demographic Characteristics of the respondents

Table 1Showing response on demographic characteristics of respondents.

(n=30)

According to the finding on age, half 15/30(50%) of the respondents were in the age group 25-34 years while minority 8 (26.7%) were 35and non-44 years of age.

The results on religion in the table above indicated that most of the respondents 14/30 (46%) were Catholics while the least 3/30 (10%) were Pentecostals.

Regarding marital status, the results revealed that majority 21/30(70%) of the respondents were married while minority 1/30 (3.3%) were separated and widowed respectively.

Figure 1 Showing response on Education level of respondents

(n=30)

According to the findings in figure 4 above majority of the respondents 12/30 (40%) were secondary school dropout while minority 1/30 (3.3%) had never attended school.

Table 2 Showing response on Occupation of respondents.

(n=30)

According to the results in the study in table 2 above, Half of the respondents 15/30 (50%) were unemployed while a minority of them 3/30 (10%) were self-employed.

4.3 Personal factors contributing to malnutrition among pregnant mothers

Figure 2 Showing whether it’s the respondent’s first pregnancy

(n=30)

According  to Figue 5 above , majority of respondents 16/30 (53.3%) said that the they were pregnant for the fast time while 14/30 (46.7%) said thet it it was not their first pregnancy.

Table 3 Showing the number of children a respondents have

(n=16)

According to the Findings in the table above, majority of the respondents 7/16 (43.8%) of the respondents had 1-2 children, while a minority 4/16 (25%) of them have 3-4 children.

Table 4 Showing respondents’ response on child spacing

(n=16)

According to the Findings in table 4 above, majority of the respondents 8/16 (50%) said that their child spacing is 2 years, while a minority 3/16 (18.8%) of them said their child spacing is 3 and above years.

Figure 3 Showing the benefits of taking nutritious foods during pregnancy

(n=30)

According to the results in table 5 above majority 10/30 (33.3%) of the respondents said they didn’t know the benefits of god nutrition during pregnancy while minority 3/30 (10%) said that good nutrition will make the bother produce a low weight child.

Figure 4 Showing whether respondents experience any complications at the initial stages of your pregnancy

(n=30)

According to the findings in figure 5 above majority 23/30 (76.7%) said they experience complications during their initial stages of pregnancy while minority 7/30 (23.3) said they didn’t.

Table 5 Showing the type of complication experienced by pregnant mothers

(n=23)

According to the finding in the table above, most of respondents 10/23 (43.5%) said that the experience vomiting in the initial stages of their pregnancy while the least 2/23 (8.7%) experienced diarrhea.

Table 6 Showing how respondents solved their Pregnancy complications

(n=23)

The results in the table above revealed that majority of respondents 14/23 (60.9%) said that they did nothing to solve their initial pregnancy complications while minority 1/23 (4.3%) said that they ate food of interest.

4.4 The social, economic factors contributing to malnutrition among pregnant women

Figure 5 Showing whether respondents are employed

(n=30)

According to the findings in figure 6 above, majority of the respondents 20/30 (63.3 %) said that they were unemployed while minority 10/30 (36.7%) were employed.

Table 7 Showing respondents’ monthly income.

(n =30)

According to the results in table 5 above majority 18/30 (60%) of the respondents house hold income status  was less than 200000 shs a month while minority 12/30 (40%) house hold income status was more than 200000 shs per month.

Table 8 Showing the source of respondents’ food

(n=30)

According to the table above, majority 17/30 (56.7%) of the respondents said that the source of their food is from a garden while minority13/30 (43.3%) were getting it from the market.

Table 9 Showing how much respondents spend on food monthly

(n=30)

According to the findings in table 6 above, majority 24/30 (80%) of the respondents said that they spend less than 200000 per month on food while minority 1/30 (3.3%) said they spend more than 200000 on food.

Figure 6 Whether respondents’ partner contributed to their feeding during pregnancy

(n=30)

The results in the figure above indicate that majority of respondents 21/30 (70%) revealed that their partners contribute to feeding during their pregnancy while minority 9/30 (30%) said that their partners don’t contribute anything.

Figure 7 Showing the how respondents’ partners contribute to their pregnancy.

(n=21)

The results in the figure above indicate that majority of respondents 11/21 (52%) revealed that their spouses contribute food to their pregnancy while minority 1/21 (5%) said that their partners contribute by preparing meals.

Figure 8 Whether respondents have nutritional support groups in their community.

(n=30)

The results in the figure indicates that majority 24/30 (80%) said that they don’t have nutritional support groups while minority 6 (20%) said they have.

Table 10 Showing how nutritional support groups help them during pregnancy

(n=6)

The results in the table above indicate that majority 4/6 (66.7%) said that support groups contribute food while minority 2/6 (33.3%) said they teach on what to eat during pregnancy.

.5 Cultural factors that contribute to malnutrition among pregnant women.

Table 11 Showing whether there is food taboos against women in respondents’ culture

(n=30)

According to the findings in table 7 above indicate that majority 27/30 (90%) of the respondents said that there are food taboos against women in their culture well as a minority 3/30 (10%) said that there is no such taboos in their culture.

Figure 9 Showing the type of food ladies are denied

(n=30)

According to the findings in figure 8 above majority 10/30 (33.3%) of the respondents said that women are denied to eat eggs while minority 1/30 (3.3%) mentioned other kind of foods denied to women.

Table 12 whether there is equality between men and women in regard to food distribution in culture.

(n=30)

According to the findings in table 8 above, a great majority of respondents 29/30 (96.7%) said that there is no equality between men and women while just 1/30 (3.3%) said that there is equality between men and women.

Table 13 Showing the kind of inequality that manifests itself between men and women

(n=30)

The results in the table above indicate that majority of respondents 20/29 (69%) said that inequality that manifests itself between men and women is that Men get the biggest portions of the meal and Men are served first while minority 4/29 (13.8%) said than men are served first.

CHAPTER FIVE

DISCUSSION, CONCLUSIONS, RECOMMENDATIONS AND IMPLICATIONS TO NURSING PRACTICE

5.1 Introduction

This chapter presented discussion of findings of the study; it drew conclusions, made recommendations and implications to nursing practice.

5.2 Discussion of the study findings

5.2.1 Demographic data

Majority 15/30(50%) of the respondents were in the age group 25-34 years and none of the respondents was 45 years and above. This indicated that the respondents were mature and able to give well informed responses.

The results from the study also reveal that majority 14/30 (46%) of the respondents were Catholics Protestants and Muslims while minority 3/30 (10%) were Pentecostals. This implied that the study was not biased since all religions participated in the study because malnutrition cuts across all religions.

According to the findings of the study, majority of the respondents 12/30 (40%) were secondary school dropout while minority 1/30 (3.3%) had never attended school. This finding indicated that most of the respondents had very limited information regarding good nutrition hence were unable to articulate the dangers of malnutrition during pregnancy.

Regarding marital status, the results revealed that majority 21/30(70%) of the respondents were married while minority 1/30 (3.3%) were separated. This finding revealed that most respondents had husbands taking care of their nutritional needs.

According to the results in the study, majority of the respondents 15/30 (50%) were unemployed while a minority of them 3/30 (10%) were self-employed this implied that majority of the respondents were of Low income status therefore unable to access health foods and services.

5.2.2 Personal factors contributing to malnutrition among pregnant mothers.

Majority of respondents 16/30 (53.3%) said they had children while 14/30 (46.7%) were pregnant for the first time. This implied most mothers had experience in how to handle their nutrition during pregnancy but a significant number did not know what foods to eat during pregnany. This finding corresponded with (Rossman, et al (2015) who revaled that fist time mother experience hormonal changes whiles mother in their socond or third pregnacies have experience in handling themselves in terms of nutrition.

According to the in the study majority of the respondents 7/16 (43.8%) of the respondents have 1-2 children and 5/16 (31.2%) had 5 and above children this implied that most mothers were young and had not produced many children. This is in line with (Bitew et al, 2010) who said that women who had never had a child and women with at least five children (Parity 5+) were at a higher risk of chronic malnutrition than other women.

According to the results of the study, majority of the respondents 16/30 (53.3%) of the respondents said that their child spacing is 2 years, while a minority 5/30 (16.7%) of them said their child spacing is 3 and above years. This implied that most respondents were using family planning in order to manage malnutrition which is in line with (Dewey, K. G., et al.2007) who said that Child spacing: nutritional burden on the mother between pregnancies depended on the extent of breastfeeding, the inter-pregnancy interval and the ‘recuperative interval’ (duration of the no pregnant, non- lactating interval) could measure whether the mother has had a chance to recover from the pregnancy. Therefore, there is expected increase in the risk for maternal anemia when the inter-pregnancy interval is very short.

From the results of the study 10/30 (33.3%) of the respondents said they didn’t know the benefits of good nutrition during pregnancy while minority 3/30 (10%) said that good nutrition will make the mother produce a low weight child. This implied that most mothers has limited information about the relationship between the nutrition of the mother and the weight of the child. This was in line with a study (UK National Institutes of Health 2011) which revealed that most mothers in rural Britain had little information about the benefits of good nutrition compared to those who lived in urban areas.

According to the findings, 23/30 (76.7%) said they experienced complications during their initial stages of pregnancy while minority 7/30 (23.3) said they didn’t. this implied that due to poor nutrition most mothers experience complications during pregnancy and this is in line with (UK National Institutes of Health 2011) who carried out a study on 31,000 pregnant women in the in suburbs of Lagos Nigeria and revealed that 65% of women had complications during their initial stages of pregnancy due to rapid hormonal changes. Poor nutrition and too little weight gain were considered to be the contributing factors to this risk. Hyperemesis gravidarum affects about 1% of pregnant women, this usually disappears during the second half of pregnancy, and typically does not cause serious complications in the mother.

The finding of the study also revealed that most of respondents 10/23 (43.5%) said that the experience vomiting in the initial stages of their pregnancy while the least 2/23 (8.7%) experienced diarrhea. This implied that pregnancy caused rapid body changes which came with different complications to the mother. This finding corresponds with (Neiterman, et al, (2017) who revealed that it’s hard for mothers’ to avoid complications during pregnancy because they experiences rapid hormonal, physical and emotional changes in that period.

The findings further revealed that majority of respondents 14/23 (60.9%) said that they did nothing to solve their initial pregnancy complications while minority 1/23 (4.3%) said that they ate food of interest. This was due to the fact that these pregnancy complications were sometimes normal body changes that are not a threat to the health of the mother. This was similar to the study carried out by (Bergbom, et al, 2016), who revealed that the complications experienced by the mother during the initial stages of pregnancy are normal body changes that the body adopted with time and the mother felt better without any treatment.

5.2.3 The socio-economic factors contributing to malnutrition among pregnant women

According to the findings in the study, majority of the respondents 20/30 (63.3 %) said that they were unemployed while minority 10/30 (36.7%) were employed. This indicated that most respondents were dependents and had no economic power to handle good nutrition. This corresponds with (Dasgupta, P. 2016) who stated that women employment increases her economic status in their homes, this in particular improves her nutrition status and household nutrition. Employment may increase women’s status and power, and may bolster a woman’s preference to spend her earnings on health and nutrition.

According to the results in the  study majority 18/30 (60%) of the respondents house hold income status  was less than 200000 shs a month while minority 12/30 (40%) house hold income status was more than 200000 shs per month. This meant that these women are less likely to have a balanced and healthy diet for nutrition, resulting in higher risk of underweight. This was similar to (Emina et al. (2009) who stated that increase in a woman economic status improves her nutrition status and household nutrition. Employment may increase women’s status and power, and may bolster a woman’s preference to spend her earnings on health and nutrition.

According to the results in the study, majority 17/30 (56.7%) of the respondents said that the source of their food is from a garden while minority13/30 (43.3%) were getting it from the market. This indicated that most of the respondents have access to fresh food and vegetables which were free. This result was in line with (Okello, et al 2016) who in his study in Amuru northern Uganda stated that majority of Ugandans are peasant farmers who earn their livelihoods from subsistence farming.

The findings also revealed, majority 24/30 (80%) of the respondents said that they spend less than 200,000 per month on food while minority 1/30 (3.3%) said they spend more than 200,000 on food. Which indicated that most of the respondents don’t spend a lot on food and this is probably because most of them and their spouses are low income earners hence resulting in mulnutrition. This result corresponded with (Van Klaveren, et al, 2009) who in his study in Bostswana among 6000 pregnant women, 54% of them revealed that they only spend 500 Botswana pula per month on food.

The results in the study indicated that majority of respondents 21/30 (70%) revealed that their partners contributed to feeding during their pregnancy while minority 9/30 (30%) said that their partners don’t contribute anything. This meant that most respondents depended on their partners for feeding and other support during pregnancy which led to fairly good nutritional status. This result corresponded with (Cornwall, A. 2016) who carried out a study in Egypt about women emancipation and revealed that among 47000 sampled 52% agreed that their spouses cater for their feeding medical bills and support them at home when they are pregnant.

The results in the study further indicated that majority of respondents 11/21 (52%) revealed that their spouses contribute food during their pregnancy while minority 1/21 (5%) said that their partners contributed by preparing meals. This result indicated that most of the respondents were dependent on their spouses for food and other help during pregnancy which would contribute to good nutrition. This finding is in line with (Sokoya, 2009) study about women’s perception of husbands’ support during pregnancy, labour and delivery in  Ogun State Lagos Nigeria, among the 200 participants (92.5%) said that their husbands bring for them fruits and vegetables on their way back from work.

According to the results in the study, majority 24/30 (80%) said that they don’t have nutritional support groups while minority 6 (20%) said they have. This implied that most of the respondents were not sensitized about good nutrition especially during pregnancy at community level. This finding corresponded with (Nisbett, N., et al, 2017) who states that in many communities in Sub Saharan Africa lack nutritional structures at village levels that can sensitize people especially pregnant women about nutrition.

The results in study further indicated that majority 4/6 (66.7%) said that support groups contributed food while minority 2/6 (33.3%) said they tought on what to eat during pregnancy. This indicated that nutritional support groups in the community are very important to promote good nutrition among the people especially pregnant mothers. This finding was in line with (Corley, et al, 2016) who stated that good nutrition among pregnant women especially in rural areas can be achieved through the promotion of community support groups that can be used to sensitize and teach people on how to feed well.

5.2.4 Cultural factors that contribute to malnutrition among pregnant women.

According to the findings of the study majority 27/30 (90%) of the respondents said that there are food taboos against women in their culture while minority 3/30 (10%) said that there is no such taboos in their culture. This contributed to malnutrition among the respondents with food taboos. The findings agree with (Merchant, K. M 2014) who stated that food taboos among rural women have been identified as one of the factors contributing to maternal under nutrition in pregnancy. Pregnant and lactating women in various parts of the world are forced to abstain from nutritious and beneficial foods. In various studies, it was seen that pregnant women in various parts of the world are forced to abstain from nutritious foods as a part of their traditional food habits

The results in the study further revealed that majority 10/30 (33.3%) of the respondents said that women are denied to eat eggs 9/30 (30%) said that women are denied chicken 6/30 (20%) said meat, 4/30 (13.3%) said vegetables while minority 1/30 (3.3%) mentioned other kind of foods denied to women. This implied that denial of these women to eat the above foods contributes to malnutrition which corresponded with (Paupério, A., et al, 2014), who urged that food taboo is a deliberate avoidance of a food item for reasons other than simple dislike from food preferences. In some societies, food taboos are often meant to protect the human individual and the observation, for example, that certain allergies and depression are associated with each other could have led to declaring food items taboo that were identified as causal agents for the allergies.

According to the findings in the study, a great majority of respondents 29/30 (96.7%) said that there is no equality between men and women in regards to food distribution while just 1/30 (3.3%) said that there is equality between men and women. This implied that men got balanced diet which compromised pregnant women’s’ nutritional status. This corresponded with (Meyer-Rochow, V. B. 2009), who acknowledges that, it is believed that any food taboo, acknowledged by a particular group of people as part of its ways, aids in the cohesion of this group, helps that particular group maintain its identity in the face of others, and, therefore, creates a sense of belonging.

The results in the study indicated that majority of respondents 20/29 (69%) said that inequality that manifests itself between men and women was that men get the biggest portions of the meal and Men are served first while minority 4/29 (13.8%) said than men are served first this indicated that men took large portions of food hence women were not getting required amount of food values hence contributing to malnutrition. This result was in consistence with (Corley, A. G., et al, 2016) who stated that in sub-Saharan Africa, men dominate the households and this dictates that women serve food to them faster and they give them more food than them.

5.3 Conclusion

The study made the following conclusions;

The results of the study revealed that personal factors contributing to malnutrition were fast time pregnancy due to lack of experience were majority16/30 (53.3%) said that the they were not pregnant for the fast and 10/30 (33.3%) said they didn’t know the benefits of good nutrition while, 23/30 (76.7%) said they experience complications during their initial stages of pregnancy like vomiting diarrhea and lack of appetite.

The results further indicated that socio-economic factors also contributed to malnutrition where majority 20/30 (63.3 %) said that they were unemployed which resulted in low expenditure on food like 24/30 (80%) of the respondents said that they spend less than 200,000 on food monthly and majority 80% did not have nutritional support from their communities.

In regards to cultural factors, the study revealed that majority 27 (90%) had food taboos against women which deprives pregnant women of nutritious foods like eggs, milk chicken, meat. The results also revealed by a majority 29/30 (96.7%) of respondents that there is no equality between men and women in regards to food distribution.

 Final conclusion

In conclusion, personal factors, socio-economic factors and cultural factors all contributed to malnutrition among pregnant women in Butansi

5.4 Recommendation

The study made the following recommendations;

5.4.1 To the government

The study recommended that government of Uganda should increase on the facilitation of health Centre IIIs so that health centers like Butansi health center III can acquire facilitation that would enable it to carry out massive sensitization about the importance of proper nutrition by pregnant women.

5.4.2 Butansi health center III

The study recommended that health center management should employ skilled health workers will be in position to train pregnant women about nutrition. The health center should also avail teaching materials like chats and display them inside and outside the health Centre.

5.4.3 To the health workers.

The study recommended that health workers should act professionally while sensitizing women about nutrition of pregnant women and its importance by telling their clients about all the necessary foods they need to eat during their pregnancy. This will help the women s to make an informed choice of what to eat and also refuse to adhere to food taboos against them.

5.4.4 To mothers

The study further recommended that mothers should pay attention to health workers’ advices and make choices about the proper nutrition during pregnancy by eating the necessary foods that will help the mother and her baby.

5.5 Implication to the nursing practice

According the nursing practice, nurses should attend nutritional seminars in order to gain skills about balanced diet. This will help Health workers to counsel women on the benefits good nutrition during pregnancy in order to help them make an informed choice about which food to eat during the pregnancy period.