Assessing dietary adequacy and temporal variability in the context of Covid-19 among Indigenous and rural communities in Kanungu District, Uganda: a mixed-methods study

Abstract

Dietary adequacy is hard to achieve for many people living in low-income countries, who suffer from nutritional deficiencies. Climate change, which alters weather conditions, has contributed with other compound events to disrupt Indigenous communities’ food systems, limiting the consumption of adequate diets. The aim of this work was to conduct a proof-of-concept study exploring dietary adequacy, and investigating evidence for temporal variation in the dietary intake of Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities in Uganda in the context of the Covid-19 outbreak.
We randomly selected 60 participants, including young children, from two Indigenous Batwa and two Bakiga settlements. A concurrent mixed-methods study was conducted. Monthly dietary intake data were collected from each participant from February to July 2021 through 24-hour recall surveys. We also collected: i) demographic and Covid-19 related information; ii) weather and season information; iii) data on the perception of dietary intake over the year; iv) baseline anthropometric measurements.
The majority of the participants did not achieve nutrient adequacy in any season. Pregnant and lactating women consumed a diet which was severely inadequate in terms of nutrient consumption. Caloric and nutrient intake changed over the six-month period, with higher food consumption in June and lower in April, especially among Batwa participants. Vitamin A intake varied more over months than other nutrients in adults’ and children’s diets. Dietary intake showed indications of temporal variation that differed between nutrients. During Covid-19 lockdown, 58%of adults reported to have changed dietary habits by consuming less, and less nutritious foods.
The findings of this work highlight that the majority of the Batwa and Bakiga participants did not meet the dietary requirements for their age and gender. Accurate and monthly nutrition evaluations would help in identifying seasonal and monthly dietary needs, supporting preventive interventions protecting children and their parents from any form of malnutrition.