Beware before your Child’s Malnutrition becomes incurable!

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Is your child losing weight abnormally? Is there any visible abnormality in the development of your child? Don’t ignore! The little one might be a victim of malnutrition.

In India, 50% of the 1.3 million child deaths every year is caused by the malnutrition of children below five years, according to the UNICEF. As per a Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) report, the largest number of undernourished people are from India. The World Bank Data also indicates that India has the highest number of children with malnutrition and the figure is double of Sub-Saharan Africa.

The child population of 0-6 years in India is 13.1% of the total population. But 43% of this future citizens are underweight However, malnutrition covers both under-nutrition and over-nutrition. So, you should be alert in both the conditions. Both the undernourished and obese become under-performers in different aspects of life and as a result they turn less productive. 

Some Causes of Malnutrition in Children

Depending on the lifestyle, socio-economic status and awareness, there can be different reasons behind malnutrition in your child.

Below are some of the factors that usually leads to malnutrition in children in India-

Ø  Poor Nutrition
Ø  Low-intake of nutritious food 
Ø Lack of awareness about nutrition and healthcare
Ø Lack of iron and folic acid supplements intake by the pregnant women
Ø Lack of non-availability of healthcare assistance at the right time
Ø  Poor sanitation
ØEarly marriage and the lack of breastfeeding.
Ø  Lack of parental education
Ø  Incomplete vaccination
Ø  Ignorance of Healthy diet
Ø  Unhealthy feeding and caring practices
Ø  Unsafe water
Ø  Lack of proper sanitation & Hygiene
ØUnemployment, poverty, caste, child marriage
ØWeak implementation of government nutrition schemes.
Ø  Inadequate health infrastructure, technology and services
Ø The worms take away the essential nutrition consumed by the child resulting easy infection and malnutrition.

Possible Preventive Measures

The chronic malnutrition effects become irreversible after the age of 2 years. Hence, the children must be addressed for malnutrition within the age of 2 years to break this chain of poverty and malnutrition through generations.

Multipronged approach is required to fight malnutrition in India. Some basic preventive steps can keep your child safe from this Malnutrition Emergency-

ØEnsuring balanced diet consumption with adequate nutrients like dietary protein in the form of milk, vitamins and minerals, eggs, Fruit, vegetables, meat and pulses.
Ø Consuming various locally available and culturally accepted low cost nutritious foods
Ø Encouraging mothers to breastfeed exclusively for 6 months which can be continued for 2 years along with other nutritious foods.
 Ø  Feeding the child properly during illness.
 Ø  Creating awareness about importance of growing kitchen garden.
 Ø  Immunizing the children at the right time
 Ø  Following proper sanitation in everyday life.
 Ø  Deworming of the child so that the nutrition within the child remains intact.
Ø  Regular monitoring of Body Mass index (BMI) of children
Ø  Regular supply of folic acid, Iron, vitamins and minerals to all pregnant women.
Ø  Healthy ready-to-use-foods such as formulated bars or biscuits can add different ranges of high-quality protein, micronutrients and energy. These products nutrient dense and are resistant to microbes. 

Damages caused by Malnutrition

Among 118 developing nations, India ranked 97, as per the Global Hunger Index (GHI) for 2016. Stunting (low height for age), wasting (low eight by height) and underweight (low weight for age) are the three main consequences of malnutrition across the rural and urban India.

Mortality and malnutrition are the two sides of the same coin. Despite of having the largest food supplementation programme for children and rapid economic growth, the mortality rate of infants and under 5 children in India are 42 and 49 respectively.

Here are some other damages that are caused to your child due to malnutrition-

Ø  Unplanned weight loss
Ø  Muscle weakness   
Ø  Depression
Ø  Tiredness and fatigue
Ø  Anaemia
Ø  Stunted growth
Ø  Hair loss, dry, scaly skin
Ø  Decaying teeth
Ø  Swollen Bleeding Gums
Ø  Prolonged diarrhoea
Ø  Weak immune system
Ø  Skin infections
Ø  Poor memory
Ø  Low IQ
Ø  Renal failure
Ø  Bloated stomach
Ø  Osteoporosis or fragile bones
Ø  Preventable Blindness
Ø  Mental Retardness

Treatment of Malnutrition in Children

Additional nutrient supplement can be a solution depending on the level of malnutrition. One such high energy nutritional health drink is Aadhar that can be purchased from SastaSudar.com. It is an all-round growth formula that can be consumed by children along with milk or warm water.

However, the most important part is to find out the underlying reason behind malnutrition and that can be done by a specialised doctor only. Following this, the doctor will prescribe the specific need of nutrients the child requires.


A child who is having enough food might also experience the symptoms of malnutrition due to less digestion and absorption capacity of food nutrients. For example, a child with Cystic Fibrosis can face less absorption problem as it affects the digestive enzyme producing organ pancreas.   

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