Food Insecurity, Nutrition Assessment
Conditions
Brief summary
The goal of this clinical trial is to evaluate the effectiveness of an individualized dietary intervention in reducing household food insecurity levels and improving growth metrics in Egyptian children aged 5 to 11 years from food-insecure households, excluding those with severe chronic illnesses. The main questions it aims to answer are: Does a 12-week tailored nutrition plan significantly lower household food insecurity levels compared to general nutrition education? Does the tailored nutritional intervention significantly improve the anthropometric growth measures (weight, height, and BMI) and hemoglobin levels of these children? Researchers will compare the intervention group receiving a resource-conscious, tailored nutritional plan to a control group receiving generalized healthy dietary education to see if individualized counseling provides superior protection against severe food insecurity and better promotes linear growth and anemia recovery. Participants will undergo three primary clinic sessions across a 12-week study period: Complete baseline assessments during Session 1, including socioeconomic surveys, the Arab Family Food Security Scale (AFFS), anthropometric measurements, and venous hemoglobin blood draws. Follow either an individualized tailored nutrition plan (focusing on structured meal times and local, budget-friendly substitutions like beans or lentils) or a standard general nutrition education model using visual aids. Attend a final 12-week follow-up session to engage in collaborative healthy habit activities and repeat all primary outcome assessments (AFFS scoring, physical measurements, and hemoglobin verification).
Interventions
BEHAVIORALTailored Nutritional Counseling
Includes individualizing meal times, implementing budget-friendly local food substitutions (e.g., local beans/lentils), and teaching simple cooking methods to preserve dietary nutrients
BEHAVIORALStandard Nutrition Education Group
Households assigned to this arm follow standard, generalized healthy dietary guidelines includes food guide pyramid and how to apply.
Sponsors
Kasr El Aini Hospital
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
TRIPLE (Subject, Caregiver, Investigator)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
5 Years to 11 Years
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
1. Egyptian children aging 4 to 11 years. 2. With food insecurity according to the Arab Family Food security scale..
Exclusion criteria
1\. Children with chronic diseases: Diabetes mellitus, hypertension, asthma cardiac disease malabsorption syndrome, renal diseases \&liver diseases
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Change in household food security status | Baseline and 12 weeks | Measured using the Arab Family Food Security Scale. The scale consists of 7 items, where a score of 3 or more out of 7 indicates household food insecurity. A score was generated by categorizing the level of household food security as follows; (0-2) food secure, (3-5) moderately food insecure, and (6-7) severely food insecure .The outcome will evaluate the pre- and post-intervention difference in food security status and the percentage of households achieving complete food security. |
| Change in pediatric anthropometric growth metrics | Baseline and 12 weeks | Evaluated by measuring the percentage changes in individual child growth parameters, specifically weight (kg), height (cm), and Body Mass Index (BMI, kg/m²), weight and height will be combined to report BMI in kg/m\^2 from the initial encounter to the end of the study. |
Countries
Egypt
Outcome results
None listed