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ISSN 0973 - 0958
Nutrition in Children Less Than 5 Years
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NUTRITION IN CHILDREN
NUTRITION IN CHILDREN LESS THAN 5 YEARS IN INDIA
What is the status of nutrition in children less than 5 years in India?
In India, around 43% of its children under the age of five are malnourished or undernourished. Improper Nutrition in children is more common in India than even sub-Saharan Africa. It is estimated that one in every three malnourished children in the world live in India. Undernourished children are prone to infections and even death.
What is the usual diet of young children in India?
The average Indian diet consists mainly of cereals and pulses. It remains largely deficient in green leafy vegetables, milk and milk products and thus vitamins such as vitamin A, iodine and iron remain deficient in all children with improper diets.
Is this problem of poor nutrition common to all areas of India?
India is a vast country with diverse culture and food habits.Malnutrition thus varies in different states from 13% in Meghalaya to 55% in Madhya Pradesh. This difference is related to staple food diet, availability of food, economic status and eating habits. Non availability of food seems to be the major cause of poor nutrition in most children. However a unique problem now occurring is also overweight school children. With urbanization and rapid economic development there is change in diet and life styles. Urbanization has led to increased consumption of food with higher fat content (burgers, pizza, wafers, fries, fried snacks etc) and sedentary life style (TV, computers, less outdoor games and poor exercise etc). Thus, obesity is also on the rise. However overweight children may still be deficient in vitamins and minerals as they tend to eat more of junk food.
Thus in India, both extremes of malnutrition (underweight - obesity) is seen. However in both these situations, vitamin and mineral deficiency in diet is common.
What are the complications of undernourishment in children?
Energy, protein, vitamin and mineral deficiencies occur due to undernourishment. This impairs the immunity of the body and children can get diseases such as pneumonia, malaria, diarrhea and measles and there is a higher chance of dying due to these infections. These infections can in turn lead to poor intake of food as children are too sick to eat and this can aggravate the malnutrition. Thus, it becomes a vicious cycle and children can get repeated infections.
Poor nutrition for a long time can lead to stunting. It has been found that preschoolers who are stunted tend to have lower intelligence when older and also tend to be shorter as adults.
What should be the ideal diet for preschoolers in India?
The general recommendation for 2 years olds is a diet that primarily consists of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, dairy products and beans. (Fish and lean meat can be eaten by non-vegetarians).
Children should be exclusively breast fed for first 6 months of life followed by gradual introduction of other food items in the diet. However breast milk may be deficient in vitamins and minerals if the mother has vitamin and mineral deficiency. Thus fortification of food with vitamins [e.g. iodized salt contains iodine in natural salt to prevent iodine deficiency]; vitamin and mineral supplements may be needed in these children to prevent complications.
In India, around 43% of its children under the age of five are malnourished or undernourished. Improper Nutrition in children is more common in India than even sub-Saharan Africa. It is estimated that one in every three malnourished children in the world live in India. Undernourished children are prone to infections and even death.
What is the usual diet of young children in India?
The average Indian diet consists mainly of cereals and pulses. It remains largely deficient in green leafy vegetables, milk and milk products and thus vitamins such as vitamin A, iodine and iron remain deficient in all children with improper diets.
Is this problem of poor nutrition common to all areas of India?
India is a vast country with diverse culture and food habits.Malnutrition thus varies in different states from 13% in Meghalaya to 55% in Madhya Pradesh. This difference is related to staple food diet, availability of food, economic status and eating habits. Non availability of food seems to be the major cause of poor nutrition in most children. However a unique problem now occurring is also overweight school children. With urbanization and rapid economic development there is change in diet and life styles. Urbanization has led to increased consumption of food with higher fat content (burgers, pizza, wafers, fries, fried snacks etc) and sedentary life style (TV, computers, less outdoor games and poor exercise etc). Thus, obesity is also on the rise. However overweight children may still be deficient in vitamins and minerals as they tend to eat more of junk food.
Thus in India, both extremes of malnutrition (underweight - obesity) is seen. However in both these situations, vitamin and mineral deficiency in diet is common.
What are the complications of undernourishment in children?
Energy, protein, vitamin and mineral deficiencies occur due to undernourishment. This impairs the immunity of the body and children can get diseases such as pneumonia, malaria, diarrhea and measles and there is a higher chance of dying due to these infections. These infections can in turn lead to poor intake of food as children are too sick to eat and this can aggravate the malnutrition. Thus, it becomes a vicious cycle and children can get repeated infections.
Poor nutrition for a long time can lead to stunting. It has been found that preschoolers who are stunted tend to have lower intelligence when older and also tend to be shorter as adults.
What should be the ideal diet for preschoolers in India?
The general recommendation for 2 years olds is a diet that primarily consists of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, dairy products and beans. (Fish and lean meat can be eaten by non-vegetarians).
Children should be exclusively breast fed for first 6 months of life followed by gradual introduction of other food items in the diet. However breast milk may be deficient in vitamins and minerals if the mother has vitamin and mineral deficiency. Thus fortification of food with vitamins [e.g. iodized salt contains iodine in natural salt to prevent iodine deficiency]; vitamin and mineral supplements may be needed in these children to prevent complications.
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