A scoping review of literature describing the nutritional status and diets of adolescents in Côte d’Ivoire

Abstract

Objective: Adolescents living in resource-limited settings remain a neglected population regarding their nutritional health. We reviewed what studies on nutrition have been conducted for adolescents living in Côte d’Ivoire. Design: A scoping literature review, searching for any quantitative studies published from 1 January 2000 to 1 May 2019, referenced in PubMed and grey literature, related to adolescent nutritional status and diet, written in English or French. Setting: Côte d’Ivoire, West Africa Subjects: Adolescent girls and boys (aged 10–19 years). Results: We used three search strategies to explore studies related to (1) diet and nutritional practices, (2) anthropometry and (3) micronutrient intakes/status. Each identified 285, 108 and 84 titles and abstracts, respectively, resulting in 384 full-text articles to review. Finally, after adding five relevant studies from the grey literature, thirty articles were included. Two-thirds were cross-sectional observation studies. The main topics were anaemia and parasitic diseases. Among seven intervention studies, most focused on micronutrient supplementation or deworming. No studies on macronutrients or food supplementation were found. Overall, studies showed a high prevalence of undernutrition, along with emerging overweight and obesity. Anaemia and Fe deficiency were highly prevalent, with Fe supplementation showing modest improvements. Malaria and gut parasite infections remain a major burden, affecting adolescents’ nutritional status. Conclusions: Few specific relevant studies have been published regarding adolescent nutrition in Côte d’Ivoire, and most studies being focused on younger children. There are knowledge gaps about many nutritional aspects in this population, which urgently need to be addressed.

Relationship among Food Intake, Dietary Habit and Immunity among Different Age People in West African Countries during the Covid-19 Pandemic

“…Consumption of fast foods rich in saturated fats and sugar has also replaced traditional diets, especially among adolescents from the higher socio-economic background. There is however limited consumption of fruits, vegetables, and dairy products which has led to a deficiency in one or more vital nutrients like iron, calcium, magnesium, vitamin A and vitamin B2 [64]. Furthermore, despite good knowledge of nutrition and health, the majority of adolescents in the low -income suburb of Abidjan still participate in unhealthy nutritional behaviors like consumption of sugar dense and fat-rich snacks which have been implicated in 17.2% prevalence of impaired fasting glycemia and 0.4% prevalence of diabetes amongst adolescents.…”