PREVALENCE OF MALNUTRITION DETECTED BY ANTHROPOMETRIC ASSESSMENT IN CHILDREN UNDER 5 YEARS OF AGE IN SELECTED RURAL AREAS OF LOWER EGYPT

Abstract

A child’s nutritional status is a primary determinant of his health and well-being. Poor nutritional status has dire consequences throughout the life cycle of an individual which includes mortality, infections, cognitive impairment, lower work productivity, early onset and higher risks of developing NCD’s, stigma, and depression. These consequences have an effect on future generations thus affecting nations as a whole. Egyptian children are suffering from both under nutrition and over nutrition, in what is globally known as the double burden of malnutrition. The United Nations standing committee on nutrition endorsed the WHO Child Growth Standards in 2006 after the Multicenter Growth Reference study was concluded by the WHO in 2003. This study established guidelines for the healthy growth and development of all infants and young children in all countries around the world, and enabled all health providers and parents to monitor closely the growth of children between the ages of 0-60 month. The consecutive Demographic and Health Survey in Egypt have clearly captured the nutritional problems of infants and children for over a decade. The Ministry of Health and Population endorsed the WHO growth standards and adopted the weight for age and height for age curves as the standard upon which the growth of its children is monitored. In late 2013, it established a Nutrition Unit within the Maternal and Child Health Department to combat this health threat. This unit has chosen two Governorates in Lower Egypt to set up a pilot of interventions to overcome the problems of malnutrition with a special emphasis on under nutrition. This study’s objective: was to determine the prevalence of malnutrition detected by basic anthropometric assessment in children 0-60 month of age in selected rural areas of two districts in the governorates of Qalyubia and Gharbia, to establish a current baseline on nutritional status. It also aimed to explore the possible underlying factors of malnutrition in the selected areas. The Fieldwork was conducted between 26 of November and 23 December 2013. In total, we randomly selected, enrolled and assessed 3917 children in this study from the health units of the two selected districts. WHO-Anthro program version 3.2.2 was used to assess the nutritional status of the sample children and data was analyzed using IBM© SPSS© Statistics version 23. No statistically significant difference was observed concerning the demographic characteristics of the two study populations or in prevalence of the different forms of malnutrition.