The effect of mothers’ nutritional education and knowledge on children’s nutritional status: a systematic review

Abstract

Malnutrition in children is a significant risk factor for child mortality and is a global health problem. One of the influencing factors is low economic factors and the mother's education. This study aimed to analyze the effect of mothers’ nutritional education and knowledge on children’s nutritional status: a systematic review. The literature examined in this literature review uses four databases, including Embase, ProQuest, PubMed, and Google scholar. The studies included the effect of nutrition education on maternal knowledge and children's nutritional status. Nutrition education impacted mothers’ knowledge, attitudes, and skills (p < 0.001). The effect of nutrition education on mothers affects children’s nutritional status, namely in the form of changes in the average birth weight of children, increasing 0.257 kg/0.26 kg compared with birth weight in the control group (β = 0.257, p < 0.001). Nutrition education has a significant impact on increasing maternal knowledge and children's nutritional status. Sharing various approaches can be done by providing nutrition education, brainstorming, and demonstrations. Nutritional health education methods and media can be in booklets, guidebooks, leaflets, and internet technology applications.