Perception of nutritional status and personal hygiene practices of female garment workers in Bangladesh

Authors

  • Nilufa Yeasmin Department of Applied Food Science and Nutrition, Faculty of Food Science and Technology, Chattogram Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Khulshi, Chattogram- 4225, Bangladesh, Bangladesh
  • Mohammad Mozibul Haque Department of Applied Food Science and Nutrition, Faculty of Food Science and Technology, Chattogram Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Khulshi, Chattogram- 4225, Bangladesh, Bangladesh
  • Md. Altaf Hossain Department of Applied Food Science and Nutrition, Faculty of Food Science and Technology, Chattogram Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Khulshi, Chattogram- 4225, Bangladesh, Bangladesh
  • Ayesha Begum Department of Applied Food Science and Nutrition, Faculty of Food Science and Technology, Chattogram Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Khulshi, Chattogram- 4225, Bangladesh, Bangladesh
  • Urmi Rani Devi MS in Applied Human Nutrition and Dietetics, Department of Applied Food Science and Nutrition, Faculty of Food Science and Technology, Chattogram Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Khulshi, Chattogram- 4225, Bangladesh, Bangladesh
  • Omar Faruk Miazi Department of Genetics and Animal Breeding, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Chattogram Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Khulshi, Chattogram- 4225, Bangladesh, Bangladesh

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.60015/bjvas.v9i2.145

Keywords:

Female garments workers, Nutritional status, Personal hygiene, demographic factors

Abstract

The garment industry is one of the main export-based economic sectors in Bangladesh. Female workers are a crucial part of this sector and have had a pivotal role in increasing the county's revenue in recent decades. The prime aim of this study was to observe the nutritional status and personal hygiene practices of female garment workers (FGW) in the Chattogram metropolitan area, Bangladesh. A cross-sectional study had conducted for collecting data from randomly selected garment workers (382) in Chattogram, Bangladesh. Then data analysis (univariate and bivariate) was performed using STATA 13.0 software. This study revealed that 46.34% of the participant's weight was in the normal range based on body mass index (BMI), 3.14% were underweight, 38.74% were pre-obese, and 11.78 % were obese. Most of the respondents (56.54%) had normal hemoglobin levels, and three-fourths of their blood pressure was normal. Furthermore, we found a significant association of safe water drinking with the level of education, mother’s occupation, marital status, and family income (p<0.05). In addition, the use of menstrual pads during menstruation was also significant with types of families (p< 0.05). In conclusion, the awareness of hygiene practices among women and government policy needs strengthening to reduce the risks of unhygienic practices.

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Published

2022-02-23

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