FOOD ENVIRONMENT DOMAIN | EMERGING THEME |
---|---|
EXTERNAL | Food prices: There were constant price fluctuations of food that were the primary driver of food purchase decisions. |
Food vendors: Purchase locations provided PLHIV and their families food on credit to pay back later, when they found work, so they would avoid going without eating. | |
Food availability: It was difficult to plan food purchases in advance as the foods that were available for purchase differed by day. | |
HOUSEHOLD/ FAMILY | Gender: Women caregivers would forgo their own food needs and preferences to prioritize the needs of the PLHIV. |
Disclosure and knowledge: Within this disclosed population, family members knew that PLHIV needed to take their ARV medications with food to reduce side effects and improve the effectiveness of the medication. | |
Allocation decisions: were made within the family to improve the diet of the PLHIV. • Especially with increased disease severity, family members would forgo their preferences to increase the food consumption and dietary quality of the PLHIV. • Cooking resources (one pot, fuel, water), time use, and affordability limited overall family food choice. Despite these constraints, PLHIV were often given a bigger portions and more desired foods. • Nutritious foods recommended by healthcare professionals were purchased for the PLHIV. • Families made food substitutions to reduce expenditure wherever possible. | |
Extended networks helped to reduce resource insecurities and ameliorate extreme economic hardships. • Drawing on kin • Buying food with loans or on credit | |
PERSONAL | Desirability: • Preferred foods were chosen based on emotional connections (traditional, cultural, tribally relevant foods), specific tastes and smells but less on texture and appearance. • Change in food preferences over time with diagnosis and disease progression. • Gender differences exist in the perception of “healthy” foods. |