DIETARY AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC CORRELATES OF NUTRITIONAL STATUS IN A RURAL ADULT KENYAN POPULATION

There is a lack of data on trends in body composition among developing countries and the distribution of malnutrition among adults is poorly understood. Thus, the objective was to establish nutritional status, demographic make-up, dietary habits, and to determine if socioeconomic variables or dietary habits are associated with nutritional status in a rural adult Kenyan population. Five hundred Kenyan adults ages 18-55 years were recruited from the Kombewa division, located 40 km west of Kisumu, Kenya. The proportion of underweight and overweight adults is consistent with developing countries in nutrition transition. Using standard body mass index (BMI) classifications, 9.8 % of the study population was underweight, 76.0 % were normal weight, and 14.2 % were overweight or obese. Significantly more females (20.7%) were overweight or obese than males (4.1%) (P=0.001). Iron deficiency was a significant issue, with 21.4 % of females classified as anemic (Hb<120g/l). Among overweight females, anemia rates remained high (16.9%) and were greater than in underweight females (10.8%). While 20 % of subjects were HIV positive, their statu