Nutritional intake of people living with HIV/Aids (PLWHA) in rural communities of Benue State, Nigeria

Abstract

Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) among rural dwellers depletes quality of agricultural labour, productivity and reduces quality of life. Uptake of Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) has not significantly reduced consequences of infection, as the effort is being compromised by poor nutritional intake. This study analysed the nutritional intake of People Living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) in rural communities of Benue State, Nigeria. Data was collected from 190 PLWHA randomly selected from members of two rural support groups with high prevalence of HIV in Benue State using interview schedule. The data was analysed using descriptive statistics, Pearson product moment correlation and Chi Square at 0.05. Mean age of respondents was 37.5±11.9, 58.9% were females while majority had secondary school education (46.6%). Diet diversity score (4.1±1.3) was low among majority (64.7%) of the respondents. Predominant food group consumed was tubers (80.0%) and cereals (55.3%). Iron (3.01) was the nutrient most consumed while vitamin B groups (1.15-1.60) were least consumed. However, age (r=-0.15) and uptake of ART (χ²=4.41) had significant relationship with nutritional intake. The study concluded that diet of PLWHA in Benue State was low in micronutrients, thus there is need for extension workers to be more pro-active in educating people living with HIV/AIDS in rural households on the need for good nutritional intake especially fruits and vegetables.

Keywords: People Living with HIV/AIDS, Diet diversity, Nutritional Intake