Food Taboos in Kenya are Hampering Dietary Diversification

Background

Diets in Kenya are hardly diversified due to many individual and environmental factors that influence eating behaviour. Determinants of Kenyan healthy eating are, however, complex and require to be analysed using a behavioural theory.

Methods

Focus Groups Discussions (15 in total) in a double-layer design were conducted comprising adult men and women from 5 villages of Vihiga County. Questions explored knowledge, barriers and cues to action towards eating a diet containing a wide variety of foods.

Results and Discussion

We found that healthy eating concepts are recalled, however, several taboos restricting foods are limiting the quality of the local diet in terms of diversity. Nutrition education is a cue to action.

Conclusions

We identified several individual and environmental determinants of eating behaviour in the studied communities. Public health interventions should focus on supporting healthy eating behaviours and educating the community about the negative health effects of some taboos.

Keywords

Eating, Restrictions, Food Taboos, Africa