Screening for gestational diabetes mellitus in Tanzania is challenged by limited resources. Therefore, this study aimed to develop a simple method for identification of women at risk of gestational diabetes mellitus in Arusha urban, Tanzania. This study used data from a cross sectional study, that was conducted between March and December 2018 in Arusha District involving 468 pregnant women who were not known to have diabetes before pregnancy. Urine glucose was tested using urine multistics and blood glucose levels by Gluco-Plus™ and diagnosed in accordance with the World Health Organization’s criteria. Anthropometrics were measured using standard procedures and maternal characteristics were collected through face-to-face interviews using a questionnaire with structured questions. Univariate analysis assessed individual variables association with gestational diabetes mellitus where variables with p-value of < 0.05 were included in multivariable analysis and predictors with p-value < 0.1 remained in the final model. Each variable was scored based on its estimated coefficients and risk scores were calculated by multiplying the corresponding coefficients by ten to get integers. The model’s performance was assessed using c-statistic. Data were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Science™. The risk score included body fat ≥ 38%, delivery to macrosomic babies, mid-upper arm circumference ≥ 28 cm, and family history of type 2 diabetes mellitus. The score correctly identified 98% of women with gestational diabetes with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.97 (95% CI 0.96–0.99, p < 0.001), sensitivity of 0.98, and specificity of 0.46. The developed screening tool is highly sensitive and correctly differentiates women with and without gestational diabetes mellitus in a Tanzanian sub-population.

Purpose: Hypertension and diabetes used to occur in adults but are now prevalent in children however, there is no enough information on student’s knowledge on prevention and management of these conditions. Therefore, this study aimed at assessing knowledge on prevention and management of hypertension and diabetes among students in Morogoro Municipality. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted at Kihonda and SUA secondary schools among 253 randomly selected students. Data were collected using KAP questionnaire adapted from the FAO and analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Science™ Version 20. Results: Over 95% of the students have never tested their blood pressure and glucose. Also, 34.4% have never measured body weight before the study. Majority (75.5%) understood that hypertension and diabetes can be prevented through managing diet and physical activity (19.2%) while 18.7% mentioned engaging in physical activities only. Furthermore, 64.4% and 69.2% did not know the management of diabetes and hypertension respectively. About 42% and 32% did not know any good and risk foods for hypertension respectively. Also, 38.3% and 35.2% did not know the appropriate and risk foods for diabetes patients respectively. Knowledge on prevention of diabetes and hypertension was associated with age AOR 1.421(95%CI: 1.015-1.989) p=0.040, education level AOR (1.118, 95%CI: 1.039-3.355) p< 0.01 and studying science subjects AOR 1.65 (95%CI: 1.306-1.692) p=0.028. Conclusion: Majority of students do not actively monitor their health and have limited knowledge on prevention and management of diabetes and hypertension creating a need for improving knowledge as a window of opportunity for prevention of non-communicable diseases.

Adequate nutrition during pregnancy is a key for early prevention of poor pregnancy outcomes and future diet related non-communicable diseases. The study aimed to determine the correlations between body mass index with body fat percentage and mid-upper arm circumference to simplify nutrition status assessments among pregnant women. A cross-sectional study was conducted in 2018 at Kaloleni and Ngarenaro antenatal clinics among 468 pregnant women. The body fat percentage was measured using bioelectric impedance analyzer™; mid-upper arm circumference by a non-stretchable mid-upper arm circumference tape; weight using a SECA™ scale, and height by a stadiometer. Demographic information was gathered by face-to-face interview using a questionnaire with structured questions and data analyzed by SPSS™ Version 20. The participants were found to have a mean age of 28 years (SD ± 6), gestational age of 28 weeks (SD ± 3.82), mid-upper arm circumference of 27 centimeters (SD ± 3.7), body fat percentage of 33.7 (SD ± 7.2) and body mass index during pregnancy of 27 kg/m2 (SD ± 5.5). About 36% of the pregnant women had mid-upper arm circumference of ≥ 28cm and 37% were overweight and 22.2 % obese based on body mass index. Among 238 pregnant women who recalled their weight before pregnancy, 25.2% were overweight and 22.7% were obese using categories for a normal adult. Partial correlations showed that, body mass index is positively correlated with body fat percentage (r = 0.701, p < 0.001) and mid-upper arm circumference (r = 0.661, p < 0.001). In addition, mid-upper arm circumference and body fat percentage have strong positive correlation (r = 0.774, p < 0.001) even after controlled for maternal and gestational age. There are positive significant correlations among pre-pregnancy body mass index with percentage body fat, and mid-upper arm circumferences, hence, useable during pregnancy to address challenges associated with BMI.