Knowledge of Anemia in Pregnancy and Nutritional Practices among Pregnant Women in Ebonyi State

Abstract

The objective of the study was to assess the knowledge of anaemia and nutritional practices among pregnant women in Ebonyi State. This was a descriptive cross-sectional survey done among pregnant women that were attending ANC in rural Ebonyi state. A questionnaire was used to collect data among 540 respondents. Data obtained was subjected to descriptive statistical analysis, and presented in a frequency and percentage table. Chi-square (χ2) was used to test the hypotheses with a p-value of ≤0.05 considered statistically significant. Findings showed that 524(97.0%) of pregnant women had a good knowledge of anemia and that only 36.3% and 34.8% of the respondents indicated always adding meat/poultry/fish and green leafy vegetables respectively in their diets. Knowledge of anaemia was significantly associated with age, location, occupation, gestational age, and number of children (p<0.05), while nutritional practices was significantly associated with age, marital status, monthly income, and number of children (p<0.05). In conclusion, pregnant women in Ebonyi state had a good knowledge of anaemia but some of them did not exhibit good nutritional practices that would help them prevent anaemia More health education and sensitization programs are, therefore, needed to increase the awareness of anaemia prevention among pregnant women.