Pii Ngima: Consequences of Water Insecurity for Maternal and Child Health

Pii Ngima: Consequences of Water Insecurity for Maternal and Child Health

This study will implement the validated household-level water insecurity scale developed by study investigators among a cohort of postpartum women in Nyanza, Kenya and will assess a range of outcomes linked to water insecurity, such as viral load, hydration status, maternal depression, stress, food insecurity, and cognitive development.

This study will develop the first well-known household water insecurity scale. Currently, water insecurity cannot be measured at the level of the household or individual, i.e. at the endpoint of water use. Although there are myriad national, regional, community, and hydrological indexes of water availability, to the investigators' knowledge, there is no way of measuring water access at the household or individual levels. Without a comprehensive, validated scale to measure household water insecurity, the scientific, programmatic, and public health communities cannot empirically test the prevalence of household water insecurity access and its potential impacts on economic, nutrition, disease, and psychosocial health pathways and outcomes.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Women >18 years of age with infants enrolled into the Pith Moromo (clinical trials ID: NCT02974972) study
• Infants born to pregnant women enrolled in the cohort study

Exclusion Criteria:

• Individuals <18 years of age that are not infants born to women enrolled in the cohort study