Knowledge, attitude, and practice of healthy eating among public school teachers in Kuwait

  • Hashem Kana”An
    Department of Public health and Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Jordan University of Science and Technology, Irbid, Jordan.
    https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5590-1576
  • Rami Saadeh
    Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Jordan University of Science and Technology, Irbid, Jordan.
    https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5957-7782
  • Ahmed Zruqait
    Director of Al-Ramtha Health Area, Al-Ramtha, Irbid, Jordan.
  • Manar Alenezi
    Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Jordan University of Science and Technology, Irbid, Jordan.
    https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3667-7067

ABSTRACT

Background: Healthy food is essential for strengthening the body and protecting it from diseases. Conversely, unhealthy food can cause severe diseases in children and adolescents. The present study aimed to assess the level of knowledge, attitude, and practice among teachers about healthy food and to examine the associated factors.

Design and methods
: A cross-sectional study was conducted using a questionnaire distributed to 300 teachers in the Hawalli and Al-Jahra educational areas in Kuwait over approximately six months in 2019.

Results: 
Those who participated in a course had significantly greater knowledge than those who did not (p=0.005). The respondents in Hawalli had a significantly lower mean attitude than Al-Jahrah teachers (7.9 ± 1.5 vs 8.2±1.5, respectively; p=0.03).

Conclusions:
 Limited knowledge combined with a low level of positive attitude suggests an ongoing educational workshop should be established to promote healthy nutrition.

REFERENCES

McCann D, Barrett A, Cooper A, et al. Food additives and hyperactive behaviour in 3-year-old and 8/9-year-old children in the community: a randomised, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial. Lancet 2007;370:1560-7. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(07)61306-3

Nestle M. Food politics: How the food industry influences nutrition and health. University of California Press; 2013.

Sekhar V, Sivsankar P, Easwaran MA, et al. Knowledge, attitude and practice of school teachers towards oral health in Pondicherry. J Clin Diagn Res 2014;8:ZC12. DOI: https://doi.org/10.7860/JCDR/2014/9779.4676

Kaushal P, Singh T, Padda AS, et al. Impact of health education on the knowledge, attitude and practices of teachers regarding reproductive health of adolescents of Amritsar, Punjab. J Clin Diagn Res 2015;9:LC18. DOI: https://doi.org/10.7860/JCDR/2015/13583.5985

Fulkerson JA, French SA, Story M, et al. Foodservice staff perceptions of their influence on student food choices. J Am Diet Assoc 2002;102:97-9. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0002-8223(02)90029-5

Hoque KE, Kamaluddin MA, Razak AZ, Wahid AA. Building healthy eating habits in childhood: a study of the attitudes, knowledge and dietary habits of schoolchildren in Malaysia. Peer J 2016;4:e2651. DOI: https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.2651

Dickson‐Spillmann M, Siegrist M. Consumers’ knowledge of healthy diets and its correlation with dietary behaviour. J Hum Nutr Diet 2011;24:54-60. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-277X.2010.01124.x

Al-Isa A, Alfaddagh A. Nutritional knowledge among Kuwaiti college students. Health 2014;6;65063. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4236/health.2014.65063

Chavan GM, Chavan VM. Knowledge, attitude and practices of secondary school teachers regarding school health services in children. Int J Community Med Public Health 2018;5:1541-6. DOI: https://doi.org/10.18203/2394-6040.ijcmph20181232

Liu H, Xu X, Liu D, et al. Nutrition-related knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) among kindergarten teachers in Chongqing, China: A cross-sectional survey. International J Environ Res Public Health 2018;15:615. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15040615

Sharma S, Dortch KS, Byrd-Williams C, et al. Nutrition-related knowledge, attitudes, and dietary behaviors among head start teachers in Texas: a cross-sectional study. J Acad Nutr Diet 2013;113:558-62. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jand.2013.01.003

Lynch M. Kindergarten food familiarization. An exploratory study of teachers' perspectives on food and nutrition in kindergartens. Appetite 2015;87:46-55. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appet.2014.12.200

El-Sabban F, Badr HE. Assessment of nutrition knowledge and related aspects among first-year Kuwait University students. Ecol Food Nutr 2015;50:181-95. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/03670244.2011.552376

Aktas N, Contento IR, Güldemir O, Koch P. Classroom teachers’ attitudes towards nutrition education and the school food environment: An online survey in Turkey. J Nutr Educ Behav 2013;45:S61-2. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jneb.2013.04.162

Burney NA, Johnes J, Al-Enezi M, Al-Musallam M. The efficiency of public schools: the case of Kuwait. Educ Econ 2013;21:360-79. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09645292.2011.595580

Nahikian-Nelms M. Influential factors of caregiver behavior at mealtime: a study of 24 child-care programs. J Am Diet Assoc 1997;97:505-9. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0002-8223(97)00130-2

Legesse A, Muluken A, Getasew A. A survey on awareness of consumers about health problems of food additives in packaged foods and their attitude toward consumption of packaged foods: A case study at Jimma University. Int Food Res J 2016;23:375.

Odeyemi KA, Chukwu EE. Knowledge, attitude and practice of school health among primary school teachers in Ogun state, Nigeria. Nigerian J Paediatr 2015;42:340-5 DOI: https://doi.org/10.4314/njp.v42i4.11