HEALTH PROMOTION WITH MOTHERS OF UNDERNOURISHED CHILDREN FROM THE RURAL AREA

Abstract

The practice of good eating habits is important since childhood, however, the media, culture and socioeconomic conditions require food standards for the practice, most of the time, divorced from reality. This study aimed to describe the socioeconomic profile of children living in rural areas, in addition to assess the behavioural changes of the mothers of malnourished children that occurred with the implementation of educational workshops. The research was kind of participant, with a qualitative approach. It took place in the district of Tuína, located in the municipality of Massapê - CE, and the informants were nine mothers of malnourished children younger than four years. The data collection occurred through participant observation, interviews and educational workshops during the months of october/2006 to march/2007. In the analysis of data, the technique was used for categorical thematic content of the type proposed by Bardin (2007). The data were categorized during home visits, emerging the following categories: food habit in rural zone and conceptualize to malnutrition. In the educational workshops were addressed issues related to child malnutrition, such as breastfeeding, healthy eating, intestinal parasites, hygiene and intestinal infection. The mothers have available to look after the children malnourished, but do not have sufficient knowledge, being necessary strategies for health education to improve the quality of life of children malnourished.