The study published in BMJ Nutrition Prevention & Health revealed that despite various initiatives, childhood undernutrition due to chronic undernutrition remains a major public health challenge in India, affecting more than a third of 5-year-old children. Is. Is.
“Public health interventions in India in recent decades have effectively addressed the already prevalent nutritional problems, such as iodine deficiency, that are associated with living at high altitude,” said Dr Professor Sumantra Ray. A think tank.
Ray said, "But this study highlights the complexities of undernutrition in a mountainous region, where extensive research is needed to elucidate the relative contributions of heredity, environmental lifestyle and socioeconomic factors to the broader determinants of undernutrition in children under 5 years of age." Research is needed." “Study is needed.,
To learn further, researchers drew on data from the 2015-16 National Family Health Survey (NFHS-4) on 167,555 children under 5 years of age. About 1.5 percent of the children lived between 1,000 and 1,999 meters above sea level, and 0.2 percent lived at or above 2,000 meters. Overall, stunting was seen in 36 percent of children, with the prevalence being higher among those aged 18–59 months (41 percent) compared to those younger than 18 months (27 percent).
Stunting was found to be more common among children born third or higher in the birth order (44 percent) than among children born first (30 percent).
The rate of stunting was even higher among children who were small or very small at birth (45 percent).However, the study is "observational" and "cannot confirm height as a cause of stunting," the researchers said.
According to him, prolonged stay at high altitude can reduce appetite, disrupt oxygen delivery to tissues and limit nutrient absorption, leading to stunted growth. “Food insecurity also occurs at higher altitudes, where crop yields are lower and the climate is more harsh. Similarly, health care provisions, including implementing nutrition programs and access to health care, are also more challenging,” he said.
The study showed that mother's education, proper prenatal care, such clinic visits, tetanus vaccination, and iron and folic acid supplements; Proximity to health facilities acted as protective factors against stunting.
“Public health interventions in India in recent decades have effectively addressed the already prevalent nutritional problems, such as iodine deficiency, that are associated with living at high altitude,” said Dr Professor Sumantra Ray. A think tank.
Ray said, "But this study highlights the complexities of undernutrition in a mountainous region, where extensive research is needed to elucidate the relative contributions of heredity, environmental lifestyle and socioeconomic factors to the broader determinants of undernutrition in children under 5 years of age." Research is needed." “Study is needed.,
To learn further, researchers drew on data from the 2015-16 National Family Health Survey (NFHS-4) on 167,555 children under 5 years of age. About 1.5 percent of the children lived between 1,000 and 1,999 meters above sea level, and 0.2 percent lived at or above 2,000 meters. Overall, stunting was seen in 36 percent of children, with the prevalence being higher among those aged 18–59 months (41 percent) compared to those younger than 18 months (27 percent).
Stunting was found to be more common among children born third or higher in the birth order (44 percent) than among children born first (30 percent).
The rate of stunting was even higher among children who were small or very small at birth (45 percent).However, the study is "observational" and "cannot confirm height as a cause of stunting," the researchers said.
According to him, prolonged stay at high altitude can reduce appetite, disrupt oxygen delivery to tissues and limit nutrient absorption, leading to stunted growth. “Food insecurity also occurs at higher altitudes, where crop yields are lower and the climate is more harsh. Similarly, health care provisions, including implementing nutrition programs and access to health care, are also more challenging,” he said.
The study showed that mother's education, proper prenatal care, such clinic visits, tetanus vaccination, and iron and folic acid supplements; Proximity to health facilities acted as protective factors against stunting.
