Food Consumption Score and Associated Factors Among Pregnant Women in Injibara Town, Northwest Ethiopia፡ A Community Based Crss-Sectional Study

Abstract

<i>Background</i><i>: </i>Pregnant women are the most vulnerable groups for poor food consumption, particularly for those in resource limiting settings like Ethiopia. Furthermore, there is a scarcity of evidence on food consumption in these population groups and study area. Thus, this study aimed to assess adequate food consumption score and associated factors among pregnant women in Injibara Town, North west Ethiopia. A community based cross-sectional study was conducted from October 7 to November 09, 2024, among 383 pregnant women in Injibara Town. A multistage sampling technique followed by Systematic random sampling technique was used to select study participants. Data were collected using an interviewer-administered questionnaire on Kobo Toolbox and exported to SPSS version 26 for analysis. Binary logistic regression was employed to explore associations between dependent and independent variables. Finally adjusted odds ratio with 95% Confidence Interval at p-value < 0.05 was considered as statistically significant. The result showed that nearly three fifth (58.9%, 95% CI: 54.2%-64.1) of the study participants had adequate food consumption score. Pregnant women who were followed ANC Three times [AOR = 0.46, 95% CI: 0.238, 0.89], prim gravida [AOR = 1.745, 95% CI: 1.036, 2.939], poor wealth status [AOR = 0.269, 95% CI: 0.125, 0.577], middle wealth status [AOR = 0.46, 95% CI: 0.251, 0.843], and skip meal [AOR = 0.288, 95% CI: 0.137, 0.604] were significantly associated with adequate food consumption score. This study revealed that the overall consumption of adequate food during pregnancy was below the World Food Program recommendation. Strengthening antenatal care Services, give special attention to multi grvida women, addressing socioeconomic barriers and reducing meal skipping are recommended to improve adequate food consumption.