Nutritional status of Palestinian preschoolers in the Gaza Strip: a cross-sectional study

BMC Public Health

Table 1 Characteristics of the study sample (N = 350), Gaza, 2007

	N (%) (unless otherwise indicated)
Child factors
Age in months [mean (SD)]	59 (8)
Females	170 (49%)
Low birth weight (< 2.5 Kg)	25 (7%)
Received iron syrup	209 (60%)
Received vitamins A &D	197 (56%)
Exclusively breast fed for 4-6 months	278 (79%)
Complementary food at 6 months	237 (68%)
Resilient¹	130 (37%)
Vulnerable²	52 (15%)
Moderate³	168 (48%)
Maternal factors
Age in months [mean (SD)]	31 (6)
Elementary Schooling only	34 (10%)
Employed	24 (7%)
Perceived health
- Excellent	45 (13%)
- Very good	82 (23%)
- Good	111 (32%)
- Fair or poor	112 (32%)
Potential mental health problem⁴	209 (60%)
Household factors
Living in a direct military confrontation area	88 (25%)
Family moved in the past 2 years	65 (19%)
Average household income in US dollars⁵ [mean (SD)]	204 (174)
No meat/chicken/fish most days of week⁶	197 (56%)
No fruits and vegetables most days of week⁶	212 (61%)
Family did not have enough food for at least 2 days in the past month	146 (42%)
On food assistance⁶	176 (50%)
Deprivation⁶
Shortage of money for living expenses	42 (12%)
No money to pay bills	63 (18%)
Mother thought her child was deprived	55 (16%)
Reported any form of social support⁷	132 (38%)
Family size [mean (SD)]	8 (4)
Number of rooms in the house [mean (SD)]⁸	3 (1)

Source of data: Interviews with mothers of 350 children aged 3-6 in 10 kindergartens across Gaza Strip, Palestine, January 2007.
¹ Height-for-age Z-score ≥ 0 (adequately nourished, at or above reference population mean).
² Height-for-age Z-score < -2 (stunted, more than 2SD below the reference population mean).
³ -2 ≤ Height-for-age Z-score < 0 (in between group, moderate nutritional status, up to 2SD below the reference population mean, still within the normal range)
⁴ Total score on General Health Questionnaire ≥ 5.
⁵ The estimate is based on 120 households.
⁶ Three months prior the survey.
⁷ The mother had someone to trust, to count on for help, had someone with whom she feels intimacy, or had family and friends that make her happy and secure.
⁸ Excluding bathroom and kitchen.

ISSN: 1471-2458