Contribution of Food from Market Purchases and Home Production to Child Nutrient Intake: Evidence from the EFFECTS Study Baseline Data

Savannah F O'Malley; Ramya Ambikapathi; Susmita Ghosh; Lauren Galvin; Joshua Jeong; Dominic Mosha; George PrayGod; Frank Mapendo; Gerald Shively; Laura E Murray-Kolb; Nilupa S Gunaratna

doi:10.1016/j.tjnut.2024.04.015

Contribution of Food from Market Purchases and Home Production to Child Nutrient Intake: Evidence from the EFFECTS Study Baseline Data

J Nutr. 2024 Apr 11:S0022-3166(24)00218-9. doi: 10.1016/j.tjnut.2024.04.015. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Public Health, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, United States; Department of Nutrition Science, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, United States. Electronic address: sfroese@purdue.edu.
² Department of Global Development, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States.
³ Department of Nutrition Science, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, United States.
⁴ Global Communities, United States.
⁵ Hubert Department of Global Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States.
⁶ Department of Global Health, BeVera Solutions LLC, United States.
⁷ National Institute for Medical Research, Tanzania.
⁸ Africa Academy for Public Health, Tanzania.
⁹ Department of Agricultural Economics, Purdue University, Wes Lafayette, IN, United States.
¹⁰ Department of Public Health, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, United States.

PMID: 38608871
DOI: 10.1016/j.tjnut.2024.04.015

Abstract

Background: Child undernutrition is prevalent in Tanzania, and households rely primarily on local markets and home production as food sources. However, little is known about the contribution of food market purchases to nutrient intakes among children consuming complementary foods.

Objectives: To quantify the relationships between diversity of foods purchased and produced by households and adequate child nutrient intake in Mara, Tanzania.

Methods: Cross-sectional baseline dietary and household food source data from the Fathers for Effective Child Nutrition and Development in Tanzania study were collected from mothers of 586 children aged 9-23 mo clustered in 80 villages in Mara, Tanzania. We conducted mixed effects linear regressions to quantify the association between the diversity of foods consumed at home, from market purchases and home production, and nutrient intake adequacy (based on 24-h food recalls).

Results: Children had inadequate diets, with fewer than half of children consuming adequate amounts of vitamin A, vitamin B1 (thiamine), vitamin B2 (riboflavin), vitamin B9 (folate), calcium, iron, and zinc. Breastfeeding was associated with higher overall mean adequacy (b = 0.15-0.19 across models, P < 0.001). Diversity of foods purchased was positively associated with the intake of vitamin B12 and calcium (both P < 0.001); this effect was attenuated among breastfed children. Among nonbreastfed children, production diversity was positively associated with vitamin A intake (b=0.04; P < .05) but not with intake of other nutrients.

Conclusions: Both household food purchase and food production diversities were positively associated with children's nutrient intake in rural Mara, Tanzania. Nutrition programming should consider the role of food markets in addition to home food production to improve child diets. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT03759821, https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT03759821.

Keywords: Tanzania; child nutrient adequacy; food environment; food production diversity; food purchase diversity.

Associated data

ClinicalTrials.gov/NCT03759821