ABSTRACT Body weight (especially overweight and obesity) are of global concern because of their health implications. Notwithstanding the health implications, the prevalence rates continue to increase in both developed and Low and Middle Income Countries (LMICs). The rising prevalence of overweight/obesity is attributed to changing behavioural practices such as reduced physical activity and poor dietary behaviours. Being underweight is associated with high levels of malnutrition, starvation an...
ABSTRACT Background: Malnutrition and disability are inter-related, preventable global developmental and human right priorities (Groce et al., 2014). Globally, about 19% of people have a disability (UN, 2015). Studies have established a high malnutrition rate among the disabled (Hume-nixon & Kuper, 2018; Reinehr, Dobe, Winkel, Schaefer, & Hoffmann, 2010). Micronutrients deficiencies such as iodine, iron, and vitamin A deficiencies cause several disabilities including blindness and deafness wh...
ABSTRACT In Ghana, the main barriers to scaling up nutrition interventions have been identified at the national level yet there is a knowledge gap regarding the determinants of malnutrition at the regional, district and sub-district levels where nutrition interventions are directly carried out. In the three northern regions, malnutrition is an underlying cause of high morbidity and mortality among children under the age of five. This study, therefore, used the 2008 GDHS and binary logistic re...
ABSTRACT This study examines the effect of child labour on school attendance in Ghana. It particularly tests the significance of children’s work and their schooling outcome. The 2006 Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey dataset on children aged 12-14 years with descriptive analysis, cross tabulation and binary logistic regression models were employed for the analysis. The results show that children labour whether economic or domestic has a substantial effect on children’s school attendance...
ABSTRACT In Ghana the fertility rate of 4.2 children per woman is still greater than the global average of 2.53. In view of this, various policies and strategies have been adopted to make family planning programs and methods available so as to bring about a reduction in fertility. However this has not yielded the desired results since fertility has not observed much decline. This current study examines the relationship between age at first marriage and children ever born in Ghana by the use...
ABSTRACT Ensuring optimum reproductive health through universal access to family planning services is key to human development. Though knowledge of contraception is high in Ghana its use among married women is very low, a phenomenon attributed to women’s lack of power or autonomy in sexual relationships. This study primarily sought to examine the levels of women’s autonomy in Ghana and determine the extent to which women’s contraceptive use is precipitated by their autonomy in relations...
ABSTRACT Obesity has been a pertinent issue worldwide as it constitutes one of the major public health challenges. It poses a significant challenge because of the continuous increase in its prevalence and diverse health, social and economic implications. Although the associated consequences are widespread, there is evidence of preference for larger body size in sub-Saharan Africa due to some socio-cultural standards and perceptions about body size. These have implications for weight manageme...
ABSTRACT Rapid urbanisation, population growth, introduction of environmentally unfriendly materials like plastics and changing lifestyles have created serious environmental problems in most districts and localities within the Greater Accra Region especially in the area of solid waste disposal, management and financing. This study analyses the factors that influence household’s payment for solid waste disposal in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. Using the Ghana Living Standard Survey ...
ABSTRACT Lifestyle behaviors are the major determinants of risk factors such as high blood pressure and also a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. These lifestyles include tobacco use, poor diet, physical inactivity and excessive alcohol consumption. Perception of health is an important and valid measure of people’s general wellbeing. Perceived health status does not replace or substitute actual health outcomes but rather complements it. Now more than ever, hypertension is the single ...
ABSTRACT Although provision of quality maternal healthcare has proven to be a critical strategy in reducing the high global maternal mortality level, studies on quality maternal healthcare have often been from provider’s perspective with limited research on service users, particularly in the context of health facilities. This study therefore assessed the quality of maternal healthcare in the Wa Municipality. The study was qualitative and guided by the Donabedian approach for measuring servi...
ABSTRACT The use of Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART) has emerged as an alternative option to have children in Ghana. This study aimed at investigating the use of ART as a treatment option for infertility in Ghana. Specifically, the study investigated assisted reproductive technology services delivery, assessed the experiences of infertile individuals/couples undergoing assisted reproduction processes, explored the experiences of individuals/couples who have successfully delivered thro...
ABSTRACT This study investigates the relationship between household characteristics and educational attainment of young people in poor urban communities in Accra. The study uses the urban health and poverty survey (EDULINK 2011) Round two data, with 326 household heads with young people aged 15-24 years. The objective of the study is to examine household characteristics that determine young people educational attainment in poor urban communities and also the level of education in poor urban c...
ABSTRACT This study uses the Urban Health and Poverty Survey (2011) data to investigate the correlates of knowledge of ovulation cycle among women in urban poor communities in Ghana. Knowledge of the ovulation cycle of a woman is pivotal in the practice of the traditional methods of delaying childbirth and preventing unwanted pregnancies. These methods include periodic abstinence (rhythm), withdrawal, and country-specific folk methods. Bivariate analysis shows Catholics have the highest propo...
ABSTRACT. Antenatal care is the most important health input that can help reduce maternal mortality and child birth complications. Though it appears that most women are attending ANC, a lot of them are not completing the attendance. For ANC to function to contribute to saving of life, it must be completed. Completed ANC involves attending and utilizing ANC for a minimum of four times for uncomplicated pregnancies, so that subsequent visits may only be required upon detection of complication (...
ABSTRACT Despite an increase in the number of people living in poor urban communities in Ghana, little is known about their health behavior. This study examined the correlates of health behavior in three urban poor communities in Accra, Ghana. The third round of EDULINK survey carried out by the Regional Institute for Population Studies from August-September, 2013 Agbogbloshie, James Town and Ussher Town was used. A total of 775 individuals aged 15-59 years were selected for the survey and fo...