Food Literacy and Physical Activity Intervention to Optimize Metabolic Health Among Women in Urban Uganda

Summary

Over the last 20 years, metabolic health (blood glucose and fats) of Ugandans, particularly residing in urban areas has increasingly become sub optimal. Women are the most affected. Sub optimal metabolic health increases chances of developing diseases known as non-communicable diseases (NCD); for example, type 2 diabetes and heart diseases. NCD are expensive to treat and Uganda lacks the health system to manage them. Therefore, there is need to prevent NCD. Metabolic health is mainly linked to dietary and physical activity behaviour. Studies show an increase in physical inactivity in urban Uganda, especially among women. Likewise, what urban Ugandans eat deviates from healthy recommendations by World Health Organization. For example, 9 in 10 urban Ugandans do not meet the daily fruit and vegetable health recommendations. Research shows that unhealthy eating and physical inactivity behaviours in urban Uganda are due to socio-cultural conceptions (prestige linked to weight gain and consumption of animal protein) and knowledge/skills gaps. Following the intervention mapping protocol, investigators have therefore designed an intervention to help women living in urban Uganda improve eating and physical activity behaviours to align them to healthy recommendations. Investigators target women because they are the most vulnerable health wise; possibility of passing on NCD risk from the mother to the offspring. Women are as well the most strategic for family behavioural change as they oversee dietary decisions in homes. The purpose of this study is to assess the effectiveness of a combined food literacy and physical activity intervention in optimizing metabolic health among women of reproductive age living in Urban Uganda. The study is a cluster randomized control trail divided into two phases: a three months intervention and a three months post-intervention follow-up phase. Primary outcome is waist circumference. The target group are women of reproductive age (18 to 45 years), residing in Kampala. Intervention will be delivered through religious women group structures.

Conditions

• Abdominal Obesity

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Food literacy and physical activity promotion interactive group sessions + Developed health promotion intervention materials (booklet)

Information, skills training, goal setting and feedback interactive group sessions to improve food literacy aimed at increasing consumption of fruits and vegetables Information, skills training, goal setting and feedback interactive group sessions to increase engagement in moderate physical activity Information and skills training to increase ability to evaluate nutrition information In general, focus will be on increasing knowledge, skills and self-efficacy to develop a lifelong healthy and gastronomic relationship with food and physical activity.

BEHAVIORAL

Developed health promotion intervention materials (booklet).

In the control arm, participants will only be given the developed intervention materials (designed in form of the usual awareness programs). No group sessions will be conducted

Sponsors & Collaborators

• VLIR-UOS

  collaborator UNKNOWN

• Kyambogo University

  collaborator OTHER

• Our Lady of Africa Mbuya Catholic Parish

  collaborator UNKNOWN

• KU Leuven

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Peter Yiga · KU Leuven

• Christophe Matthys · KU Leuven

• Patrick Ogwok · Kyambogo University

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

PREVENTION

Masking

SINGLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Max Age

45 Years

Sex

FEMALE

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2020-11-21

Primary Completion

2021-05-08

Completion

2021-05-08

Countries

• Uganda

Study Locations