Contribution of school lunch programme to intake of micronutrients among preschool children in semi arid areas of Kilifi County, Kenya

Undernutrition adversely affects the cognitive and physical development of preschool children especially in arid and semi-arid areas, with far reaching effects up to adulthood. School feeding programmes are perceived as safety measures to improve children’s health. The study assessed the contribution of school lunch feeding programmes in improving the micronutrients intake of preschool children in Kilifi County, Kenya. This quasi experimental study involved 288 children from ten Early Childhood Education Development (ECED) centers and their parents/ guardians. Five of the centers had a government sponsored school lunch programme (Lunch programme group) and the other five centers had no lunch programme (Non programme group). Data collected included types of food, frequency and quantity consumed by the children using 24 hours’ recall method and Individual Dietary Diversity Score (IDDS). The micronutrients intake was assessed through Recommended Dietary Adequacy (RDA) using NutriSurvey 2007 Program and 2009 WHO guidelines. The SPSS version 24 and SAS version 9.4 statistical software were used in data management and analysis. Inferential statistics including Chi-square, correlation and regression were used to evaluate the contribution of the feeding programme to the micronutrient intake. The threshold for statistical significance for all analysis was set at p<0.05. The results indicated a low intake of micronutrients with only 12% meeting RDA for zinc in the feeding programme and 2% for those not in the programme. For iron, 30% of those in the programme met the RDA and 16% for those not in the programme. All the children met the RDA for iodine, vitamin A and C but none met the RDA for calcium. The study suggests diversification and supply consistency of school feeding foods to boost the micronutrient intake. The community needs to be empowered in areas of nutrition education, income generation and food production to be able to cater for the children’s nutritional needs and prevent micronutrient deficiency. Key words: Dietary diversity, Micronutrient deficiency, preschoolers, recommended dietary adequacy