can home garden produce have an impact on the nutritional status of pre-schoolers?

Aim of the study: This study set out to determine the impact of home gardens on the nutritional status of pre-school children in an informal settlement in South Africa. Methods: Children aged two to five years (n=40) were selected to participate in the study. The sampled children were divided into groups: 24-35 months (four boys and one girl), 36-47 months (four boys and five girls) and 48-60 months (14 boys and 12 girls).The children’s anthropometric measurements were taken and recorded. Summary of Results: Twenty-five percent of boys (24-35 months) were underweight and below the 50th percentile at the pre- and post-project stages. Of the boys aged 36-47 months, 25 per cent were stunted pre-project and had decreased to 50 per cent. Twenty-one percent of the older boys (48-60 months) were within their normal height for age. Twenty-five percent of girls were underweight (36-47 months). All girls aged 24-35 months were below -2 standard deviations pre-project and were severely stunted postproject. The older girls were well nourished with means of height-for-age at -0.88 (below 50th percentile) pre-project and -0.92 (below 50th percentile) post-project. Conclusions: The results highlight that malnutrition is problematic among children all age groups in this sample. Home gardens had no statistically significant impact on anthropometric measurements of the children. A concerning, negative statistical difference was found between pre- and post-study height-for-age z-scores for boys, showing significant deterioration of nutritional status among boys.