An exploration of factors that influence the regular consumption of water by Irish primary school children

Molloy, Charlotte J; Gandy, Joan; Cunningham, C.; Slattery, C. Glennon

doi:10.1111/j.1365-277x.2008.00880.x

Cited by 21 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…The stronger influencer were family members (44.2%), which a variety of members were reported, siblings, grandparents as well as parents. This result highlights that teachers may not be ensuring adequately that children are hydrated within the school day, this may be due to the notion previously proposed 15 that teachers are not keen on their pupils drinking in lesson time due to distractions caused by taking time to consume, not then partaking in learning activities because of frequent visits to the toilets. This could indicate that teachers need further professional development to fully understand the benefits and also the limitations of effective hydration and the impact that this can have on their class of young children.…”

Section: Who Tells You To Drink?mentioning

confidence: 89%

Young Children’s Understanding of Fluid Intake.

Williamson

Howells

2019

IJN

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Background Coppinger and Howells’ (2019) previously completed an International comparison between primary schools in Ireland and England focusing on children’s understanding of fluid intake. They identified that children under 11 years did not understand the amount of fluid they need each day for good health. Within their sample there was only a limited number of children who were aged 4 – 5 years. This research focuses on this particular age phase and further questions if young children understand fluid intake. Methods 130 children (63 boys and 67 girls, of which 83 were aged 4 and 47 were aged 5) from 4 elementary schools in the South East of England were questioned between January and April 2019 using an adapted version of Coppinger and Howells’ (2019) questionnaire on their understanding of fluid intake and how much they perceived they drank and who supported them in prompting them when to drink. The adaptions were to ensure the questionnaire was age appropriate for younger age range, and included physical visual representations to aid question comprehension. Results 46.9% of children felt they consumed 500ml or under a day. Only 39.6% responded that they were supported by the teacher, also when children were thirsty, if given the option of playing or stopping rehydration and then playing 33.8% would continue to play without drinking. Conclusion Young children in England do not understand fluid recommendations, they were not supported within the school setting by their teacher and more effective resources and strategies are needed to support children’s knowledge.

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Section: Who Tells You To Drink?mentioning

confidence: 89%

Young Children’s Understanding of Fluid Intake.

Williamson

Howells

2019

IJN

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“…Children should not have to ask for permission to drink water, and school staff should encourage students to stay hydrated. Restrictions in water access may lead to the absence of attention during classes and risks for pupils' well-being [31]. Although the school staff could be a positive force to empower hydration throughout the school day, only half of the students (47%) reported that they talked about the importance of drinking water.…”

Section: Wash: Education and Practicesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Challenges of Access to WASH in Schools in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: Case Study from Rural Central Kazakhstan

Bolatova

Tussupova

Toleubekov

et al. 2021

IJERPH

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Safe water and sanitation, which give rise to appropriate hygiene, are fundamental determinants of individual and social health and well-being. Thereby, assessing and widening access to sustainable, durable water and sanitation infrastructure remains a global health issue. Rural areas are already at a disadvantage. Poor access to water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) can have a major negative effect on students in rural schools. Thus, the paper aims to assess the current condition and the challenge to access WASH in rural Kazakh schools. The study was conducted in three rural schools in Central Kazakhstan. Data were gathered through a survey among pupils, observations of the WASH infrastructure and maintenance, and a face-to-face interview with school administrators. The mean survey response rate was 65% across schools. Results indicated there was no alternative drinking-water source in schools, and 15% of students said they had access to water only occasionally. Half of the students reported that the water was unsafe to drink because of a poor odor, taste, or color. The toilet in school 3 was locked with a key, and a quarter of the students reported there was no access to a key. Moreover, not having gender-separated toilet facilities was a challenge because of the traditional gender norms. Despite the effective regulations and measures of handwashing taken during COVID-19, 27.7% of the students answered that soap was not offered daily in classrooms. Additionally, warm water was only provided in school 2. About 75% of students did not have access to drying materials continuously. The study shows that having the schools’ infrastructure is not enough when characteristics, such as availability, accessibility, maintenance, operation, quality of services, education, and practices, are ignored. Cooperation between local education authorities, school administration, and parents should be encouraged to the achievement of the sustainable development goals (SDGs) by 2030.

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“…Children's bodies contain a higher percentage of water compared to adults and their larger surface area to volume ratio puts them at a greater risk of water loss through the skin when environmental temperatures rise 2 . As a result, there has been increasing interest into the effects of dehydration on children's cognitive function [3][4][5] , with one study in 10-12-year-olds reporting both a reduction in short-term memory scores and verbal tasks when dehydrated 6 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

International Comparison of Children’s Knowledge, Barriers and Reported Fluid Intake Across the School Day.

Coppinger

Howells

2019

IJN

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Background To date, no research has explicitly examined children’s knowledge and consumption of fluids at school, particularly during times of exercise (physical education (PE)). Methods Between May and July, 2018, 322 (213 females, 104 males; mean age = 8 years 5 months, SD ± 2 years 1 month) elementary school children from Ireland (n=237) and England (n=85) completed a questionnaire on their understanding of fluid intake and how much they perceived they drank on days when they did/did not participate in PE. Results Younger (<9 years) English children were most thirsty at the end of the school (68%), compared to younger and older (≥9 years) Irish children who were most thirsty after (38% <9 years; 39% ≥9 years) or during (21% < 9 years; 21% ≥9 years) PE. In both countries for <9 year olds, similar amounts were consumed on days when they did, and did not, partake in PE with 41% of all participants reporting intakes below daily guidelines. No child, of any age, was correct at predicting what their fluid intake should be on days when they took part in PE. Conclusion Young children in England and Ireland do not understand fluid recommendations, especially the increased need for fluid on days when they partake in PE. Further objective research is needed to ascertain whether actual fluid intake in children matches perceived intakes and whether the structure of the school day, and intensity levels of PE lessons, influence these intakes. Additional research needs to gauge the importance of the teacher and how they are a key influencer in supporting children in their learning of how, why and when to drink.

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An exploration of factors that influence the regular consumption of water by Irish primary school children

Abstract: The issues, opinions and perceived barriers raised by teachers as part of this qualitative research provide a basis for future health promotion around water.

Cited by 21 publications

References 16 publications

Young Children’s Understanding of Fluid Intake.

Young Children’s Understanding of Fluid Intake.

Challenges of Access to WASH in Schools in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: Case Study from Rural Central Kazakhstan

International Comparison of Children’s Knowledge, Barriers and Reported Fluid Intake Across the School Day.

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