Hygiene practices among young adolescents aged 12-15 years in low- and middle-income countries: a population-based study
Liyuan Han, Xuping Gao, Minqi Liao, Xiaoxuan Yu, Zhang Ruijie, Shiwei Liu, Fangfang Zeng
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Poor personal hygiene increases disease risk, however, the prevalence of hygiene practices among adolescents is poorly described in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). We aimed to assess the hygiene practices among young adolescents in LMICs using data from the Global School-based Student Health Surveys (GSHS). METHODS: This population-based study analysed the GSHS data for adolescents aged 12-15 years from 75 LMICs. Data were collected between 2003 and 2015 using standardised, anonymous, self-reported questionnaires. This report focuses on hygiene related behaviours such as tooth brushing, washing hands after using the toilet, washing hands before eating and washing hands with soap. The weighted prevalence and 95% confidential intervals (CIs) for the hygiene practices, and overall and regional estimates were calculated with random-effects meta-analysis. RESULTS: values <0.001). Poor hygiene status, with a prevalence >20%, was still observed in several LMICs (eg, 12 countries for never washing hands and 4 for never brushing teeth). CONCLUSIONS: The hygiene practices of young adolescents aged 12-15 years were generally frequent, but poor status was still observed in several LMICs. These findings emphases the need for hygiene and health education targeting young adolescents in LMICs.