Peer-reviewed article

Nutritional Hygiene Practices and Learning Outcomes in Public Pre-School Institutions in Homa Bay County

Donnet Anyango Ogada, Benson Charles Odongo, Lazarus Millan Okello · 19 Jun 2026

Abstract

Optimal early childhood development depends on the interplay between adequate nutrition, proper hygiene practices, and supportive learning environments in pre-primary schools. Despite the implementation of school feeding programmes, nutritional hygiene practices (including sanitation) remain inconsistent due to infrastructural and resource constraints, potentially undermining children’s health, attendance, and learning outcomes. Therefore, the paper examined how nutritional practices affected learning outcomes in public pre-primary schools in Homa Bay County, Kenya. The paper is guided by a pragmatic research paradigm and utilising a concurrent triangulation design to assess the relationship between nutritional education practices and learning outcomes in public pre-primary schools in Homa Bay County. The target population consisted of 877 public pre-primary schools, 877 head teachers, 1,211 teachers, and 40 Early Childhood Development Education field officers. A sample of 44 head teachers, 301 teachers, and 40 ECDE supervisors was obtained and sampled using purposive and stratified random sampling methods. Data were collected through questionnaires, interviews, and observation checklists. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics, whereas qualitative data were subjected to thematic content analysis. The study established that nutritional hygiene practices were inconsistently implemented due to infrastructural constraints (lack of kitchens), which also influenced pupils’ health, attendance, and cognitive readiness. The correlation analysis showed a moderate positive relationship (r = 0.446, p=0.01), indicating that improved nutritional hygiene practices such as handwashing, clean food handling, and proper storage of food are associated with better learning outcomes by learners. The study concluded that nutritional hygiene practices played a significant role in influencing learning outcomes (knowledge, skills, and attitudes) by pre-primary school children. There is a need for strengthening school infrastructure through the provision of kitchens and sanitation facilities, enhancing teacher training on nutritional hygiene practices, and enforcing school health policies to ensure consistent implementation of safe food handling and hygiene standards.