Below are updates on news and events from members of the USAID Community of Practice (COP) on WASH and Nutrition and links to recent studies and reports added to the WASH/Nutrition Library. Please send an email if you have a recent publication or an upcoming event that we can feature in the update. The aim is to send these out every 1 to 2 months.
- Link to the complete update – http://goo.gl/uTuUHb
REPORTS
Growing Tall and Smart with Toilets, 2013. Water and Sanitation Program. (Link)
The research in Cambodia found that open defecation not only affects one’s own health, but it also affects the health of one’s neighbors. The extent of open defecation in a community is more important for a child’s development than whether the child’s household itself openly defecates.
Integrating WASH into NTD Programs: A Desk Review, 2013. WASHplus. (Link)
Soil-transmitted helminthes, schistosomiasis, and trachoma are all clearly linked to inadequate sanitation, contaminated food and water, and poor hygiene, providing an opportunity for water, sanitation, and hygiene related approaches to help change behavior and the environment.
Research Priorities for the Environment, Agriculture and Infectious Diseases of Poverty, 2013. WHO. (Link)
This report provides an evaluation of challenges presented by interactions between environment, agriculture and infectious diseases of public health importance. It explores the benefits and limitations of a more systems-based approach to conceptualizing and investigating this problem.
Sanitation Combinations: Water, Sanitation, Hygiene, and Nutrition in Kenya, 2013. G Christensen. (Link)
This research provides evidence that demand for health is highly income elastic, and easy habit formation is essential for high uptake of health interventions.
JOURNAL ARTICLES
Determinants of Moderate-to-Severe Anaemia Among Women of Reproductive Age in Tanzania: Analysis of Data from the 2010 Tanzania Demographic and Health Survey.Trop Med Intl Health, Dec 2013. C Wilunda. (Abstract)
Prevention interventions should target women with lower education or without proper sanitation facilities, and women who are pregnant, particularly if they are uneducated or in lower wealth groups.
Handwashing before Food Preparation and Child Feeding: A Missed Opportunity for Hygiene Promotion. Am J Trop Med Hyg, Dec 2013. F Nizame. (Abstract)
Enteric diseases are often caused by poor hygiene and can contribute to stunting. In 50 randomly selected villages in Bangladesh, researchers collected quantitative and qualitative data on handwashing linked to child feeding to integrate handwashing promotion into a young child complementary feeding program.
- Link to the complete update – http://goo.gl/uTuUHb
