Malnutrition among kids doubles in decade

Chandigarh: The government may have been making efforts to tackle malnourishment, but a majority of the measures, it seems, have gone down the drain. The number of malnourished children in Punjab has almost doubled in the past decade, the findings of National Family Health Survey-4 have pointed out.

The data for National Family Health Survey-4 was compiled from a survey that covered 16,449 households. AFP file photo

Vishav Bharti

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 28

The government may have been making efforts to tackle malnourishment, but a majority of the measures, it seems, have gone down the drain. The number of malnourished children in Punjab has almost doubled in the past decade, the findings of National Family Health Survey-4 have pointed out.

The data for NFHS-4 —considered among top studies in the health sector —was compiled from a survey that covered 16,449 households. Punjab’s report is to be released soon.

According to the survey, acute malnutrition among children below five years—considered an important growth indicator—has increased to 15.6 per cent from 9.2 per cent in NFHS-3 (conducted in 2005-06).

The World Health Organisation standards put low weight-for-height category children in ‘acute starvation’ or ‘severe disease’ category, or even both.

The situation has gone even worse in the ‘severely malnourished’ category, with an almost three-fold rise in the last 10 years: from 2.1 per cent in NFHS-3 to 5.6 per cent in the latest survey.

Health experts have called it an alarming situation. “The indicators signify that whatever steps have been taken have come to a naught, which is quite alarming. The government must examine the quality of diet being provided to children in anganwaris and urgently introduce more items on the menu,” says Dr

Rajesh Kumar, head, School of Public Health, Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh.

The only consolation for the authorities has come in the ‘stunted’ (short height and low body mass for their age group) category where the count has fallen from 36.7 per cent in the last survey to 25.7 per cent in the latest study. The number of children under 5 years who are underweight has also declined from 24.9 per cent to 21.6 per cent.

The cases of anaemia among women as well as men (see box) have risen alarmingly too.

The number of anaemic women, aged 15 to 49 years, stood at 38 per cent in NFHS-3, which has risen to 53.5 per cent. The figure stands at 54 per cent in non-pregnant women (15-49 years), up from 37.9 per cent 10 years ago. The pregnant women category has shown a slight rise from 41.6 per cent to 42 per cent in NFHS-4.