Form of words:
Ddespite the rapid Economic Development In the last few decades, India’s home is A third Of all the malnourished children in the world. The latest ranking of the Global Hunger Index once again shows how India is? lags behind Its poor neighbors, which include Pakistan and Bangladesh, rank on several child nutrition indicators. India has been ranked 101 out of 116 countries in the index. childhood malnutrition long lasting negative Impact on health and education. This has an economic impact on both the affected children and their communities. Therefore, India needs an urgent solution to eliminate child malnutrition.
our recent research It suggests that feeding young Indian children more animal-sourced and vitamin A-rich foods will help reduce their malnutrition rates. Livestock ownership and participation in the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) program can play an important role in encouraging such dietary changes.
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Recent rise in child malnutrition
After witnessing a decrease in child malnutrition over the past twenty years, the trend in India seems to be reversing. data from the latest round of National Family Health Survey (NFHS 2019-20) Indications released for 22 Indian states show that in the past five years, more than half of the states reported child stunting (too young for age) and two-thirds of underweight children (too thin for age). has experienced greater growth. The table below shows which of India’s 22 states have been most successful and which have the least in tackling stunting and underweight children. Over the past two years, the nutritional outcomes of Indian children have been even better negatively affected by the ongoing covid-19 pandemic.
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baby food and nutrition results
World Health Organization (WHO) advice That babies should be exclusively breastfed until the age of six months and thereafter receive adequate amounts of solid, semi-solid or fortified food with milk. Research has previously shown that babies are ‘weaning’ (in other words, starting on solids) on time at six months. Necessary For good nutritional results. A varied diet at an early age has also been found in a Positive impact On nutritional status of children. But many Indian families do not follow both these practices while feeding their young children. Nearby 23 Percentage of Indian children between the ages of six months and two years are not weaned at all, and 80 According to the WHO, the percentage does not consume a sufficiently varied diet. So feeding a varied diet to all babies at the age of six months will definitely help in reducing their malnutrition rate.
Importance of animal-sourced food
In addition, not all complementary foods are equally beneficial for children. our study examines the relationship between specific types of weaned foods and nutritional outcomes and finds that feeding babies fruits and vegetables rich in vitamin A (such as carrots, tomatoes, spinach, and mangoes) and foods derived from animals (such as carrots, tomatoes, spinach, and mangoes) Fish and meat, eggs and dairy products) have a particularly positive effect. Feeding babies any animal-sourced food was associated with an 11 percent reduction in stunting, compared with feeding them both meat and dairy, as well as a 16 percent reduction in underweight. Unfortunately, the consumption of animal-sourced foods is low among Indian children. In NFHS 2015-2016 In a sample of more than 50,000 children aged six months to two years, the day before the survey, only 28 percent ate any dairy products, 14 percent eggs, and 10 percent ate any meat or fish.
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encouraging better nutrition practices
Our study further analyzes whether participation in cattle and poultry, or ICDS, has any effect on the diet and nutrition of children.
We find that poultry farming, as opposed to owning cattle, encourages good child feeding practices. This is most evident at the village level. In villages where many families own chicken, children are on average five times more likely to eat meat and have 20 to 30 percent lower rates of stunting than younger children in villages with less chicken ownership. Poultry ownership is particularly prevalent in north-eastern India (Meghalaya, Sikkim, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh etc.), while relatively uncommon in northern states such as Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. Families who raise their chicken naturally have easy access to both eggs and poultry. But it is also likely that in villages with high poultry ownership, eating animal-source food is generally more common and accepted than in villages with low poultry ownership.
We also find that children who participate in ICDS eat more fruits, vegetables and animal-derived food than non-participating children. However, improved nutritional practices are not reflected by improved nutritional outcomes.
Read also: Caste discrimination – an overlooked factor in stunted development of Indian children
the treatment
It is clear from our study that rich families in India can feed their children better than poor families. But interestingly, we find that most of the unfair child-feeding practices cut across socio-economic lines, even 75 per cent of the country’s wealthiest families do not feed their children a sufficiently varied diet. More recognition of the importance of introducing solids to children on a timely, varied diet that includes fruits, vegetables and animal-source food, thus certainly will help reduce their malnutrition rates.
The high child malnutrition rate in India is due to several factors. as a key Our research showsSupplemental diets for young children are lacking in fruits, vegetables, especially animal-sourced foods. Better parenting and public awareness about proper complementary feeding practices through a dense national network of ICDS Anganwadi Centers as well as other nutrition policies and programs can help address the problem of Indian child malnutrition.
Dr. Ivica Petrikova (@IvicaPetricova) is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Politics and IR at Royal Holloway University in London. Arvind Kumar (@Arvind Kumar__), PhD Scholar, Department of Politics and IR, Royal Holloway University of London. Thoughts are personal.
(Edited by Anurag Choubey)
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