Abstract
Objectives
In Africa and Asia, 190 million preschoolers are vitamin A deficient. This study examined the social determinants of intake of vitamin A supplementation (VAS) among children aged 6–59 months during three different time periods in Kenya to identify those most vulnerable to vitamin A deficiency and highlight the varied targeting and outreach efforts; before the onset of a national restructuring and targeted distribution of VAS in children below 5 years through a twice-yearly door-to-door campaign called Child Health Weeks, during the implementation period, and several years later.
Methods
The cross-sectional, national Demographic and Health Surveys were administered in Kenya in 2003, 2008-09, and 2014. Bivariate and multivariable logistic regression analyses were used to assess variables associated with VAS among children (n = 28,239).
Results
An overall two-fold increase in VAS was recorded between 2003 (31.8%) and 2014 (67.5%). In 2008-09, children aged 6–11 months were the most likely to receive VAS. In 2003 and 2014, geographical regions and settings, birth order of the child, educational level of the mother, religion, wealth index, number of antenatal visits, and access to a radio were identified as being significantly associated with VAS, in at least one of the years. These determinants were not significant in 2008-09 during the initial Child Health Weeks promotion campaign. The determinants of VAS varied during the three study periods, particularly in 2008-09 when the Child Health Weeks was first implemented.
Conclusion
As efforts to increase VAS continue, addressing child-specific determinants will be essential to reduce health disparities.
Significance
Childhood vitamin A deficiency has been identified as one of the public health priorities in Kenyan children below 5 years that causes severe malnutrition. The importance of VAS was identified as a cost-effective strategy of combating and eradicating childhood malnutrition based on a previous national micronutrient survey. However, Kenya’s VAS inequities are exacerbated by the social and economic differences of women. The WHO defines these disproportionate differences as the social determinants of health. Identifying these factors will be influential for policy makers to make targeted efforts towards increasing VAS supplementation and contribution towards reducing child mortality.
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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the constitutional and/or national research committee of Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI), the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS), and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.
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Ahenda, P., Washburn, D.J., Colwell, B. et al. Shifts in Social Determinants of Vitamin A Supplementation Among Children Under Five in Kenya, 2003–2014. Matern Child Health J 27, 1284–1292 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-023-03663-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-023-03663-y