Abstract

Background: Personal hygiene refers to the practice of maintaining cleanliness and promoting and preserving body health. Objective: The main objective of this study was to assess youth (15-25years) knowledge, practices and effects of poor personal hygiene on health at the Mutengene community. Method: A cross sectional quantitative study design will be employed, the study population involved youths aged between 15-25 years living in the Mutengene community, a cluster sampling technique was used, well-structured questionnaires were used to gather information.

Microsoft excel 2010 and results presented on pie chart, histogram and frequency, table base on the demographic data and specific objectives. Results: results revealed that, majority of respondents 209(60%) went for the option that personal hygiene is the daily care of the external body parts.

Based on objective two of this study, majority 184(53%) of respondents said they bath three times. Objective three which focused on effects of poor personal hygiene on health, results revealed that majority of respondents 216(62%) agreed that, Poor hygiene can also be a cause of social rejection. Conclusion:

Based on objective one of this study youths had adequate knowledge about personal hygiene as 72% of the respondents had adequate knowledge while just 28% had inadequate knowledge about personal hygiene, with objective two, youth have poor practices with regards to personal hygiene, with objective three, youths were less aware of the effects of poor personal hygiene on health as only 46% of the respondents had adequate knowledge while 54% had inadequate knowledge on the effects of personal.

Recommendation: The researcher recommended that seminars should be organized by health authorities to educate youths more on good personal hygiene practices.

CHAPTER ONE

GENERAL INTRODUCTION

1.0 Introduction

This chapter describes the background of the study, problem statement, research objectives, research questions, significant of study, justification of study, scope of study, and operational and conceptual definitions of terms.

1.1 Background of the study

Personal hygiene practices have evolved over time, influenced by various cultural, social, and scientific factors.  During Ancient Civilizations, in ancient Egypt, bathing and grooming were important aspects of personal hygiene. People used scented oils and perfumes, and wealthy Egyptians had elaborate bathing facilities (Robins, 2015). Ancient Greeks emphasized the importance of cleanliness, with public baths being a common feature of their cities (Cartwright, 2016). Romans built extensive public bathhouses, where people could bathe, socialize, and conduct business. Roman baths were an integral part of their daily routine (Fagan, 2015). During the Middle Ages, personal hygiene practices declined in Europe due to various factors, including the influence of the church, lack of infrastructure, and limited access to clean water and in the 16th and 17th centuries, personal hygiene practices began to improve again. The Renaissance saw a revival of interest in cleanliness, and people started using scented soaps and perfumes (Cartwright, 2017).

Personal hygiene can be defined as the practice of maintaining cleanliness and promoting and preserving body health (Curtis V, Cairncross S,2017). It could also mean keeping all parts of the external body healthy (Hana Ames,2015). Maintaining a high level of personal hygiene helps

increase confidence and self‑esteem, leading to a healthy lifestyle (International Scientific Forum on Home Hygiene,2015). Personal hygiene is one of the most effective methods of public disease prevention, as there is a direct correlation between the lack of personal hygiene and illness, of which proper hand washing has been shown to reduce the risk of disease transmission (Cairncross ,2015). Lack of hand hygiene is linked with outbreaks of viral gastroenteritis (Christmas ,2014), upper respiratory tract infections (White C, Kolble R, et al,2016).  In the majority of developing countries, roughly 80% of diseases are associated with poor domestic and personal hygiene (Tambekar DH, Shirsa S,2015). Poor hygiene on the other hand have many implications, as there is a high risk of getting an illness or infection, but also there are many social and psychological issues that may arise due to poor hygiene (George D,2016).

The theory of self-care by Dorothea Orem which focuses on the performance or practice of activities that individuals initiate and perform on their own behalf to maintain life, health, and well-being. It includes self-care requisites or requirements which are actions directed toward the provision of self-caring (Dorothea Orem,2015) was used in this study.

However, globally, the rates at which hands are washed with soap range from only 0-34% of the time (Global Handwashing Day). In Africa, Poor hygiene practices and inadequate sanitary conditions play major roles in the increased burden of communicable diseases with a prevalence of 62% and 31% of all deaths in Africa and Southeast Asia, respectively, are caused by infectious diseases (Curtis VA, et al,2013).  This is common in developing countries especially in our local environment where acute respiratory and intestinal infections are the primary causes of morbidity and mortality among young children including Cameroon (WHO, 2014).

A study conducted by the Global Public, Private Partnership for Hand Washing (PPPHW) which included several sub-Saharan African countries reported that 17% of participants washed their hands with soap after using the toilet, while 45% used only water. Lack of resources, namely soap and water, as well as inadequate sanitation facilities may be two of the main reasons why youths do not wash their hands. In addition to having proper resources and facilities, hygiene practices are heavily influenced by students’ knowledge and attitudes towards hygiene.

Another study on how poor water hygiene at home affects health was carried in the Far North Region of Cameroon and it was seen that 81.2% of homes tested positive to fecal contamination of their water mostly from ruminant-associated fecal contamination, this led to an increase in diarrhea cases (Tyler J. Gortham,2014). Previous studies conducted in Ethiopia provide limited details about the hygiene KAP (knowledge, attitude, and practice) of populations in rural areas.

1.2 Statement of problem

Good personal hygiene practices remain one of the surest and oldest ways in preserving health and preventing diseases, especially infectious diseases affecting the respiratory, gastro-intestinal, and integumentary system (Curtis VA, et al,2015). Poor personal hygiene results in transmission of infections to students and may contribute to their absence from school, which in turn may affect their academic productivity (Kolble and Carlson 2014).

Again, growing up the researcher has witness many relatives, friends, neighbors, clients experience disease condition that would have been prevented if basic personal hygiene rules were practiced. Respiratory infection such as rhinitis and cough, mouth infections such as; cavities, gingivitis, periodontal disease, diarrhea, integumentary infection such as; eczema, ringworm, rashes to name a few are the diseases that affects the health of people around the nation and the globe in general.

1.3 Objectives

1.3.1 General objectives

The main objective of this study is to assess youth (15-25years) knowledge, practices and effects of poor personal hygiene on health in the Mutengene community.

1.3.2 Specific objectives

1. To investigate youths aged (15-25years) knowledge on personal hygiene.
2. To assess youths aged (15-25 years) practices towards personal hygiene.
3. To ascertain the effects of poor personal hygiene on health amongst youth (15-25years)

Check out: Nursing Project Topics with Materials