Knowledge of personal hygiene and occurrence of food and water Borne infections in selected public primary schools in aba north lga, Abia state

Abstract

Background: The persistent occurrence of illnesses linked to contaminated food and unsafe water among school-aged children
underscores the importance of understanding personal cleanliness, preventive behaviours and the conditions that shape hygiene
practices. These concerns warrant investigation among pupils attending public primary schools in Aba North Local Government
Area, Abia State, Nigeria. Objective: This study examined pupils’ understanding of personal hygiene, identified the underlying
factors shaping their awareness and everyday practices, and investigated the statistical relationships between the study variables
and reported infection occurrence. Methods: The investigation adopted a descriptive cross-sectional research design involving
children aged 6–12 years enrolled in selected government-owned primary schools. Respondents were recruited through a
multistage sampling procedure, while information was obtained using a structured questionnaire administered by trained
interviewers. From an initial sample of 405 pupils, 372 valid responses, representing 91.9%, were retained for analysis. Data
were summarised using frequency distributions, percentages and mean scores, while Spearman’s rank-order correlation was
applied to examine relationships among the variables. Results: Responses across the five items assessing personal hygiene
awareness showed affirmative proportions ranging from 67.2% to 75.3%, yielding an average of 70.4%. School-based
instruction and parental reinforcement were each acknowledged by 80.6% of respondents. Concerning environmental provisions,
72.6% indicated sufficient availability of water and soap within their schools, whereas 67.2% reported access to properly
maintained toilet facilities. Nevertheless, 45.7% experienced difficulties observing appropriate hygiene routines owing to
inadequate resources within their households. Inferential analysis established a statistically significant relationship between
pupils’ hygiene knowledge and infection occurrence (Spearman’s rho = 0.685, p < 0.001). A further significant association was
identified between the composite socio-demographic measure and hygiene knowledge and practices (rho = 0.590, p < 0.001).
Conclusion: The findings suggest that, despite relatively widespread familiarity with fundamental hygiene principles,
considerable deficiencies in pupils’ understanding remain. Unequal access to sanitation infrastructure and essential household
supplies also presents challenges to maintaining appropriate preventive behaviours. Accordingly, greater emphasis should be
placed on comprehensive hygiene instruction, improved provision of potable water and sanitation materials in schools, and
stronger collaboration between parents and educational institutions. As the investigation employed a cross-sectional design, the
identified relationships establish statistical associations rather than causal effects.