Variety of individual food items consumed by 11‐year old children in Kwazulu and Namibia

A study conducted in 1988 on 389 11‐year‐old black rural and urban children in KwaZulu, Natal, South Africa and in Namibia determined, from 24‐hour recalls, the variety of food items consumed and ranked the food items in descending order according to the total amount consumed. KwaZulu urban children consumed the largest variety of food items [65] and Namibian urban the fewest [43]. Maize meal was ranked the top item for all groups except for the KwaZulu urban group where tea was ranked top. Starches predominated in the food choices of all groups, while fruit and vegetables hardly featured, particularly in Namibia. The study has shown the importance of knowing the basic food items consumed in relative ranking by children in Southern Africa, to develop a basic food list for a nutrition education program for them and for possible application in other “Third World” countries in Africa.

Key words:

• Food items
• black children
• Southern Africa