ABSTRACT
Background: Balanced dietary intake is needed to prevent malnutrition which is one of the nutritional problems faced by adolescents. Aim: To study the association between predominant dietary intake and nutritional status of female adolescent students in boarding schools in Tasikmalaya, Indonesia. Method: This cross-sectional study was conducted on 323 female adolescent students residing full-time in eight boarding schools in Tasikmalaya, West Java. Students' dietary intake was measured using the 3-non-consecutive-day 24-h recall method. The association between the predominant dietary intake and nutritional status was evaluated using binary logistic regression. Results: Of the 323 students, 59 (18.3%) were overweight/obese (OW/OB) and 102 (31.6%) had stunted growth. The predominant dietary intake in the OW/OB group was snacks, whereas, in the stunted group, it was main meals. Snack-predominant dietary intake was a risk factor for overweight and obesity (p = 0.008; adjusted odds ratio [AOR]: 2.276; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.244-4.164), but it was a protective factor against stunting (p = 0.008; AOR: 0.521; 95% CI: 0.322-0.842). Conclusion: The predominance of main meals and snacks as components of total dietary intake affected the nutritional status of female adolescent students living in boarding schools. Therefore, the dietary intake interventions should tailor and design the nutritional contents of main meals and snacks according to the nutritional status of the targeted individuals.
ABSTRACT
Background: Efforts to increase the coverage of exclusive breastfeeding require extraordinary innovation supported by many parties, such as community leaders, including Housewives Peer Group activist living as a neighborhood of lactating mothers. The aim of this study was to analyze the effect of a short course on the knowledge and practice of Housewives Peer Group activists as assistance to lactating mothers in providing exclusive breastfeeding. Methods: The method of the research was pre and post-test of quasi-experimental. The population was Housewives Peer Group activists in the working area of Tlogosari Wetan Community Health Center, Semarang City. Samples were chosen using purposive random sampling to 37 Housewives Peer Group activists. The intervention given was a short course which should be attended by the group, and the post-test was assessed 1 month after conducting the pre-test. Results: The results of the Wilcoxson Match Paired test showed differences in knowledge (P < 0.05) and practice (P < 0.05) of the Housewives Peer Group activists before and after attending a short course regarding exclusive breastfeeding and lactation management. At the end of the study, the knowledge and practice of the Housewives Peer Group activists increased by 4.21 points and 3.73 points, respectively. Conclusions: Short course on exclusive breastfeeding and lactation management significantly influences the increased knowledge and practice of Housewives Peer Group activists that further improve the quality of transferred information, monitor public health, especially to increase the coverage of exclusive breastfeeding and lactation management for breastfeeding mothers.
ABSTRACT
Background: Since 2018, maternal mortality in Semarang City, Indonesia, has mostly (75%) occurred during the postpartum period. Therefore, a health intervention is necessary to improve safe and effective postpartum care. During the Covid-19 pandemic, a mobile-based health intervention is preferred due to the government's regulation of COVID-19 safety prevention. This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of the mobile-health interactive message on the postpartum care behavior of mothers and their husbands. Methods: The study was conducted in a quasi-experimental design. It includes the treatment group and the control group, in which each group consists of 46 pairs of pregnant women in the third trimester and their husbands. The research subjects were chosen through the purposive sampling technique. Data collection was conducted via interviews and observations. The m-health intervention is carried out in the form of text messages, images, videos, and interactive mentoring. The latter was carried out through group messaging via the WhatsApp application for the treatment group. Meanwhile, the control group received regular counseling from the local Community Health Center. Data analysis was performed by Mann-Whitney test, unpaired T-Test, Chi-Square Test dan Fisher Exact Test. Results: Intervention for 2.5 months increased the knowledge of mothers and husbands. The intervention for 3.5 months improved the mother's attitude, but not the husband's attitude. The intervention also improves maternal practices related to postpartum visits, such as Early Initiation of Breastfeeding assistance requests from health workers, iron tablets and nutritious food consumption, personal hygiene, postpartum danger signs monitoring, and the husband's practice of accompanying mothers during postpartum visits. Conclusion: Mobile-Health interactive messages effectively improved postpartum care behavior for mothers and their husbands.
