Nutritional Assessment of Refugees at a Refugee Camp

Abstract

Forced migration/refugee status is as old as man, ever increasing and literature is sparse when searching for references regarding nutritional assessment among this very important population. We aimed at making an assessment of the nutritional status among refugees at Oru refugee camp, Nigeria. Subjects were adult males and females, 100 in two groups: local residents and refugees that just moved into camp within the last 6months. A questionnaire was administered and venous blood was collected from each volunteer, centrifuged and stored at -20⁰C until analysis at the chemical pathology departmental laboratory of Ambrose Alli University, Ekpoma. Mean values of albumin in refugees and residents are respectively; 34±3.5 Vs 36g/L. Refugees have lower albumin level. It is recommended that protein rich foods should be provided at refugee camps.

Keywords: Refugees, Nutrition, Protein, Camp, Nigeria.