Page 119 - IJPS-2-1

Mattew O. Oluleke, Akintayo O. Ogunwale, Oyedunni S. Arulogun, et al

compared to those with primary education (93.8%), secondary education (79.8%), and tertiary edu-
cation (86.4%) had food restriction or avoidance behavior due to cultural taboos. Overall, there was
a statistically significant association between education and cultural taboo at P = 0.002. Respondents’
occupation was significantly associated with food restriction or avoidance behavior associated
with cultural taboos at P = 0.006. A higher proportion (97.1%) of unemployed respondents had food
restriction or avoidance behavior due to cultural taboos compared to civil servants (90.2%), artisans
(83.3%), petty traders (81.5%), and students (70.5%). A significantly higher proportion (94.8%) of
respondents who earned ₦50,000 (approximately US$315) when compared to those who earn less
had cultural taboo-induced food restriction or avoidance behavior. Overall, there was a statistically
significant association between respondents’ income and food restriction or avoidance behavior be-
cause of cultural taboos at P = 0.003. However, no significant association was observed between
food restriction or avoidance behavior associated with cultural taboos and other variables such as age,
marital status, religion, and parity.
4. Discussion

Ages of pregnant women ranged between 14–53 years old and a majority of the respondents were
within the age group of 25–34 years old. This age group is similar to that of a previous study con-
ducted among pregnant women visiting PHC centers for antenatal care in Ile-Ife which revealed a
mean age of 26 years old (Adeleye, Akoria, Shuaib et al., 2010). This study revealed that a majority
of the respondents had good knowledge of dietary intake during pregnancy. However, a few women
lacked knowledge about the specific food that should be taken more during pregnancy. Previous stu-
dies have indicated a similar trend among pregnant women (Dyer, Fearon, Buckner et al., 2004; Ka-
lesanwo, 2005). From this study, it was discovered that older women had better knowledge of dietary
intake during pregnancy compared with younger women. This may be because older women are
more experienced over time. It is not surprising that the more educated respondents had good know-
ledge of dietary intake. This may not be unconnected with the fact that education exposes people to
different sources of information which makes them more enlightened (Global Campaign for Educa-
tion, 2005). Income and occupation were not found to significantly influence knowledge of dietary
intake. This underscores the need to provide nutritional education on dietary issues for all categories
of women irrespective of their income level and occupations. Although it is interesting to observe
that many pregnant women had good knowledge of dietary intake, good knowledge of dietary intake
may not necessarily translate into good dietary practices among pregnant women. This concern
has been observed in a study in Osun state that assessed food aversion during pregnancy (Ogun-
juyigbe, Ojofeitimi, Sanusi et al., 2008). This implies that nutrition knowledge alone may not neces-
sarily be sufficient to initiate behavioral application of healthy diets (Ozdoğan and Ozferzcelik,
2011).
A surprising finding in this study is the avoidance of foods because of the perceived adverse
health effect of some healthy foods. This erroneous belief emphasizes the need for intensive nutrition
education for pregnant women that could further upgrade their knowledge on dietary related issues
during pregnancy. It is also unfortunate that many respondents avoided some body building
food based on religious beliefs. This poses more concern as a result of the fact that the women in-
volved were attending antenatal clinics and should be more informed than their counterpart who did
not patronize orthodox health facilities. Dietary avoidance of fruits and other proteinous animal
sources may result in maternal malnutrition and also deprive the child of sufficient nutrition (Ogun-
juyigbe, 2004).
This finding revealed that a low level of education was a predictor of food restriction due to cul-
tural taboos. This shows that women who are well educated are considered to reflect this knowledge
to their behaviors/beliefs (Ozdoğan and Ozferzcelik, 2011). Understanding this inter-relationship
may provide good information for designing more efficient and effective public policies, and mod-

International Journal of Population Studies | 2016, Volume 2, Issue 1 113