Knowledge, attitude and practice of women living in Yazd, Iran regarding food poisoning

Food poisoning occurs under circumstances where proper action for protecting foods from microbial contamination and chemical toxins is not taken. In the Iranian society women have an important role in preparing food in the home. The objective of this study was to assess the knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) of women living in Yazd, Iran regarding food poisoning. This was a cross-sectional descriptive study. Data were collected through interviewing 266 women living in Yazd, selected randomly by calling at their homes. Data analysis was performed using SPSS version 18. The minimum and maximum accessible scores for knowledge, attitude and practice were 0 and 15, 15 and 45 and 0 and 20, respectively. The mean (± SD) score of knowledge, attitude and practice was 11.13 ± 2.54, 39.98 ± 4.52 and 17.73 ± 1.96, respectively. Further analysis of the data showed that 63.2% of the women had no knowledge about safety of refrigerated cooked foods and 41.4% had an erroneous attitude about fruit and vegetable cleaning, believing that merely cleaning them would make them safe to eat. As regards practice, 68.8 % of the women prepared and ate semi-cooked eggs. Yazdi women lack a sound knowledge about (a). some agents of food poisoning such as, for example, Salmonella and (2). food cooking and preserving temperatures. It is recommended to plan and execute educational programs aiming at promoting knowledge and improving practice of women in these areas.