| 1. |
- Ziaei, Shirin, et al.
(författare)
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Women´s autonomy and social support and their associations with infant and young child feeding and nutritional status : community-based survey in rural Nicaragua
- 2015
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Ingår i: Public Health Nutrition. - 1368-9800 .- 1475-2727. ; 18:11, s. 1979-1990
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- ObjectiveTo evaluate the associations of women’s autonomy and social support with infant and young child feeding practices (including consumption of highly processed snacks and sugar-sweetened beverages) and nutritional status in rural Nicaragua.DesignCross-sectional study. Feeding practices and children’s nutritional status were evaluated according to the WHO guidelines complemented with information on highly processed snacks and sugar-sweetened beverages. Women’s autonomy was assessed by a seventeen-item questionnaire covering dimensions of financial independence, household-, child-, reproductive and health-related decision making and freedom of movement. Women’s social support was determined using the Duke-UNC Functional Social Support Questionnaire. The scores attained were categorized into tertiles.SettingLos Cuatro Santos area, rural Nicaragua.Subjects A total of 1371 children 0–35 months of age.ResultsChildren of women with the lowest autonomy were more likely to be exclusively breast-fed and continue to be breast-fed, while children of women with middle level of autonomy had better complementary feeding practices. Children of women with the lowest social support were more likely to consume highly processed snacks and/or sugar-sweetened beverages but also be taller.ConclusionsWhile lower levels of autonomy and social support were independently associated with some favourable feeding and nutrition outcomes, this may not indicate a causal relationship but rather that these factors reflect other matters of importance for child care.
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| 2. |
- Schmeer, Kammi K., et al.
(författare)
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Maternal resources and household food security : evidence from Nicaragua
- 2015
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Ingår i: Public Health Nutrition. - 1368-9800 .- 1475-2727. ; 18:16, s. 2915-2924
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objective: Women (especially mothers) are theorized as critical to reducing household food insecurity through their work and caregiver roles. The present study tests these assumptions, assessing how maternal economic and social resources are associated with food insecurity in households with young children. Design: Data from a population-based sample of households was collected in Leon, Nicaragua (n 443). Data include a newly validated measure of household food insecurity (ELCSA), maternal resource measures, and household economic status and demographics. Regression analysis tests the statistical associations (P<0.05) of maternal resources with household, adult-specific and child-specific food insecurity. Setting: Municipality of Leon, Nicaragua. Subjects: Households with children aged 3-11 years in rural and urban Leon. Results: Only 25 % of households with young children were food secure, with 50 % mildly food insecure and 25 % moderately/severely food insecure. When mothers contributed substantially to household income, the odds of moderate/severe household food insecurity were 34 % lower than when their spouse/partner was the main provider. The odds of food insecurity were 60 % lower when mothers managed household money, 48 % lower when mothers had a secondary (v. primary) education, 65 % higher among single mothers and 16 % lower with each indicator of social support. Results were similar for adult-and child-specific food insecurity. Conclusions: This research provides new evidence that maternal economic and social resources are important for reducing household food insecurity and adult- and child-specific food insecurity. Women's social status, social support and access to economic resources need to be enhanced as a part of policies aimed to reduce food insecurity in high-poverty settings.
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| 3. |
- Ziaei, Shirin
(författare)
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Women’s status and child nutrition : Findings from community studies in Bangladesh and Nicaragua
- 2016
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The importance of women’s status for child nutrition has recently been recognized. However, pathways through which women’s status can affect their caretaking practices and child nutrition have not been fully determined. The aim of this thesis was to evaluate associations between aspects of women’s status – including exposure to domestic violence and level of autonomy and social support – with their level of stress, feeding practices and child nutritional status in two different cultural settings: Bangladesh and Nicaragua.Data were acquired from population-based studies. For Study I we used data from the Bangladesh 2007 Demographic and Health Survey, and Study II was embedded in the 2009 Health and Demographic Surveillance System conducted in Los Cuatro Santos, rural Nicaragua. Studies III and IV were part of the MINIMat study, conducted in rural Bangladesh. In-person interviews were conducted and validated questionnaires were used in each of the studies. Anthropometric characteristics of the children were recorded based on standardized World Health Organization techniques.In Bangladesh, we found women with lifetime experience of domestic violence to be more likely to report emotional distress during pregnancy, cease exclusive breastfeeding before 6 months and have a stunted child. Further, we found a negative association between experience of domestic violence and duration of excusive breastfeeding to be mitigated with breastfeeding counseling. In Nicaragua, a lower level of maternal autonomy was associated with more appropriate breastfeeding practices such as higher odds of exclusive breastfeeding and longer continuation of breastfeeding. Further, a maternal lower level of social support was associated with better child nutritional status.In conclusion, this investigation showed that different dimensions of women’s status were associated with their feeding practices and child nutritional status and also revealed that the strength and direction of these associations may vary by the child’s age, setting and other contextual factors. These findings suggest that women’s status might have an important public health impact on child health and its role should be considered in programs and policies aiming to improve child health and nutrition.
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| 4. |
- Segnestam, Lisa
(författare)
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Interactions in Hazard Management Policies : the Case of Drought in Nicaragua, 1976-2010
- 2015
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Ingår i: Disasters. The Journal of Disaster Studies, Policy and Management. - : Wiley. - 0361-3666 .- 1467-7717. ; 39:4, s. 715-737
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The literature on adaptive and multi-level governance calls for interactive hazard management to increase societies’ resilience. This paper maps the hazard management policies in a poor and hazard-prone country—Nicaragua—and examines what role the government gives to interactions among different actors at different societal levels. A new analytical framework is developed that includes scope and direction to capture unidirectional or mutual interactions that are either horizontal or vertical. This enables a more complex analysis of interactions than that found in previous research. The review shows that the historical change in the role given to interactions, as a result of a focus on short-term emergency response being complemented by long-term risk management, mainly lies in how they are characterised—with more participants and other types of content categories—and the awareness that interactions other than mutual ones can be positive. This illustrates the complexity of the issue of interactions.
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| 5. |
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| 6. |
- Dimitrova, Radosveta, et al.
(författare)
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Relationships Between Religiousness and Life Satisfaction Among Emerging Adults in Mexico and Nicaragua
- 2017
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Ingår i: Well-Being of Youth and Emerging Adults across Cultures. - Cham : Springer. - 9783319683621 - 9783319683638 ; , s. 225-234
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Bokkapitel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This study examines relationships between religiousness and life satisfaction among 571 emerging adults (M age 29.94, SD = 2.93) from Mexico and Nicaragua. Based on the four-factor religiousness model (Saroglou V, J Cross-Cultural Psychol 42:1320-1340, 2011), we investigated the interplay of believing (beliefs relative to external transcendence), bonding (rituals and emotions), behaving (adherence to norms) and belonging (social group cohesion) and their relation to life satisfaction. Participants completed the Four Basic Dimensions of Religiousness Scale (4-BDRS; Saraglou V, J Cross-Cultural Psychol 42:1320-1340, 2011) and the Life Satisfaction Scale (SWLS; Diener E, Emmerson RA, Larsen RJ, Griffin S, J Pers Assess 49:71-75), 1985). We tested measurement invariance and associations of religiousness and life satisfaction models across groups. Findings indicated good measurement invariance for both measures and that life satisfaction was consistently associated with high endorsement of all four religiousness domains.
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| 7. |
- Hasan, Badrul, et al.
(författare)
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Fecal Carriage of Extended-Spectrum -Lactamases in Healthy Humans, Poultry, and Wild Birds in Leon, NicaraguaA Shared Pool of bla(CTX-M) Genes and Possible Interspecies Clonal Spread of Extended-Spectrum -Lactamases-Producing Escherichia coli
- 2016
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Ingår i: Microbial Drug Resistance. - : Mary Ann Liebert Inc. - 1076-6294 .- 1931-8448. ; 22:8, s. 682-687
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Antibiotic-resistant bacteria are a major concern in the healthcare of today, especially the increasing number of gram-negative bacteria producing -lactamases such as extended-spectrum -lactamases (ESBLs). However, little is known about the relationship of ESBL producers in humans and domestic and wild birds, especially in a low-income setting. Therefore, we studied the fecal carriage of ESBL-producing Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae in healthy humans, poultry, and wild birds in the vicinity of Leon, Nicaragua. Three hundred fecal samples were collected during December 2012 from humans (n=100), poultry (n=100) and wild birds (n=100). The samples were examined for ESBL-producing E. coli and K. pneumoniae, revealing the prevalence of 27% in humans, 13% in poultry, and 8% in wild birds. Further characterization of the ESBL-producing isolates was performed through polymerase chain reaction (PCR) (NDM, CTX-M), epidemiological typing (ERIC2-PCR), multilocus sequence typing, and sequencing. ESBL producers harbored bla(CTX-M-2), bla(CTX-M-15), bla(CTX-M-22), and bla(CTX-M-3) genotypes. The bla(CTX-M-15) constituted the absolute majority of ESBL genes among all samples. ERIC-PCR demonstrated highly related E. coli clones among humans, poultry, and wild birds. Clinically relevant E. coli clone ST648 was found in humans and poultry. There is a shared pool of bla(CTX-M) genes between humans and domesticated and wild birds in Nicaragua, and the results suggest shared clones of ESBL-producing E. coli. The study adds to the notion that wild birds and poultry can pick up antibiotic-resistant bacteria of human origin and function as a melting pot of resistance. Structured surveillance programs of antimicrobial resistance and a more regulated prescription of antibiotics are warranted in Nicaragua.
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| 8. |
- Rivera, Claudia
(författare)
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Disaster risk management and climate change adaptation in urban contexts: Integration and challenges
- 2016
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- An increasing number of disasters continue to affect urban populations and housing infrastructure. The overwhelming majority of them have been caused by climate-related events. This situation has made the creation of synergies between climate change adaptation (CCA) and disaster risk management (DRM) urgent. Despite the recognised need to unite CCA and DRM efforts, the fields remain separate. Furthermore, it has been difficult to reach a consensus on how to merge approaches in ways that avoid duplication of actions and reduce risk in a comprehensive way. The integration of CCA into DRM systems, which is promoted at international, national and regional levels, relies on collaboration between multiple stakeholders with different interests and objectives. While much effort has been put into understanding the barriers to integration in other fields such as development, little attention has been paid to understanding the difficulties encountered when attempts are made to integrate CCA into DRM. This thesis contributes to our understanding of the issue. It provides new knowledge about ways to evaluate and compare DRM systems in order to investigate challenges to integration. Taking Nicaragua as a case study, it explores the current extent of CCA integration into DRM, and identifies challenges to further progress. The initial analysis was based on an examination of integration into policies, regulatory instruments, perceptions and practice in the fields of DRM, urban planning and environment. However, as it became clear that some challenges are difficult to detect solely through an analysis of policy and practice, a theoretical model of the functioning of DRM systems and related CCA integration was developed. This was applied to the Nicaraguan and Swedish DRM systems, to evaluate and compare them, and investigate challenges in greater depth. It helped to draw conclusions about system behaviour and identify differences in how they attempt to achieve the same goal. The initial results indicated that although there has been some progress in CCA integration in Nicaragua, further advances depend on up-to-date, comprehensive policies and regulatory instruments. Finally, stakeholder’s lack of understanding of CCA was identified as an obstacle that limits its integration into practice. Consequently, with the application of the model it was possible to identify challenges in the Nicaraguan DRM system. It highlighted that key processes within the system are fragmented: two of which are relevant here. The first concerns the difficulty of incorporating scientific and non-technical information between administrative levels (national, regional and local) in ways that are useful for decision-making. The second is that municipalities rely on local information from community members regarding risks and vulnerabilities, and lack more technically-advanced information (which may include CCA considerations) from higher-level authorities. Both of these challenges influence the integration of CCA into DRM, as it becomes difficult to analyse and communicate the potential benefits of integrated approaches and measures. Consequently, progress (in terms of policies and regulation) has not been reflected in the implementation of measures at the local level. These findings led to the development of assumptions regarding the usefulness of risk descriptions for decision-making, which were empirically tested. The results showed that the presentation of the risk assessment influenced its usefulness in decision-making. Taken together, the results provide a way forward to foster CCA-DRM integration and support sustainable urban development and planning.
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| 9. |
- Haller, Henrik, 1977-
(författare)
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Appropriate Technologies for Soil Remediation in Low Prioritized Region : Developing Countries and Sparsely Populated Regions
- 2015
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Licentiatavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Contaminated sites in low prioritized regions demand remediation technologies that are cost- and energy-effective and locally adapted. Parameters such as the time frame during which bioremediation degradation needs to occur may not be as restraining as in urban environments. This licentiate project aims to explore opportunities and constraints for appropriate soil remediation based on organic by-products in tropical developing countries and sparsely populated areas in industrial countries. Ecological Engineering and the Framework for Strategic Sustainable Development were explored as planning tools to steer bioremediation methods towards sustainability. The use of the five concepts of Ecological Engineering within the Framework for Strategic Sustainable Development can steer bioremediation in low prioritized regions towards sustainability. Pilot-scale and laboratory experiments were undertaken to evaluate the feasibility of such bioremediation methods. Experiments carried out at the experiment station in Chontales, Nicaragua showed some promising results, but also revealed problems associated with the clay rich soils, which are typical for tropical regions. Treatment of diesel contaminated ultisol with 6 mL whey kg-1 dw in a pilot-scale experiment considerably increased the degradation rate of diesel constituents, but no effects on the degradation rates were observed after treatment with compost tea or pyroligneous acid.The soil columns study suggests that despite a favorable particle size distribution for microbial transport, the sandy loam retained a greater fraction of the microorganisms present in the ACT in the top 10 cm than the clay loam, presumably because the lower bulk density and higher SOM in the clay loam aided transport and growth of microorganisms.
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| 10. |
- Contreras, Mariela, 1979-
(författare)
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Child nutrition in rural Nicaragua : Population-based studies in a transitional society
- 2015
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Emerging favourable as well as unfavourable nutrition patterns are observed in societies undergoing rapid social and economic change. The aim of this thesis is to analyse the associations between household and maternal resources and infant and young child feeding habits and nutritional status in rural Nicaragua, a low-income transitional society.All households (n=1,500) in Los Cuatro Santos with at least one child (0-3 y) were visited to collect information on feeding of the youngest child. Children´s anthropometry was also measured using standardised World Health Organisation (WHO) techniques. Validated instruments were used to assess household and maternal resources. All instruments had been adapted to the local context and piloted in a nearby community. The education of the mother showed more independent variation in the studied outcomes. The odds for exclusive breastfeeding were highest in infants aged 0 to 5 months of mothers with the lowest education. Further, children aged 6 to 35 months with lowest educated mothers were less likely to consume highly processed snacks (HP snacks) and sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs). They were also less likely to be exposed to a double burden of suboptimal feeding (concurrent unmet WHO recommended feeding practices and consumption of HP snacks or SSBs). However, children aged 6 to 35 months were more prone to infrequently meet dietary diversity and to more shortness. Children in the same age group with lower educated mothers were also shorter in households with the lowest housing quality.Higher level of maternal education contributed both favourably and unfavourably to child feeding and nutrition. This was reflected in more and less frequent practice of the WHO feeding indicators, but also in more frequent children´s consumption of HP snacks and SSBs. Higher maternal education was associated with taller children, even in households with the lowest housing quality.
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