Kids’ height, weight woes drop over 6 yrs

Fillip For State In Fight Against Malnutrition

Mumbai: A new study holds good news for Maharashtra, which has held the dubious distinction of having one of the highest incidences of acute malnourishment among children in the country. A study by the Mumbai-based International Institute of Population Sciences (IIPS) shows a significant drop in the physical indicators of malnourishment in children across the state. 

    The yet-to-be-released IIPS report, which was commissioned by UNICEF, shows that indicators of malnutrition – like low height and weight – have fallen anywhere from 7 to 16% over the past six years. Ecstatic state government officials have claimed that the "first big step" has been taken in the fight against malnutrition in children. 
    The IIPS findings come close on the heels of the latest Sample Registration Survey 2011 report, in which Maharashtra's Infant Mortality Rate dropped 14.7% more between 2011 and 2010 than it did between 2010 and 2009. "This is a significant shift from the previous mark and looks like the largest percentage decline in the whole of the Southeast Asian region," claimed state chief secretary Jayant Kumar Banthia. 
    The IIPS researchers surveyed stunting (low height for age), wasting (low weight for height) and underweight (low weight for age) from March to May 2012 across 3,000 households in Maharashtra having at least one child aged below two. Children aged up to six were studied in these households. These were the same parameters studied by the National Family Health Survey (NFHS)-3 in 2005-06 in about 5,000 households in Maharashtra with children aged below 6, said IIPS and state officials. 
    IIPS discovered that stunting, an indicator of chronic malnutrition in children, stood at 22.8%. In 2005-06, the NFHS 3 put the figure at 39%. Underweight, another crucial indicator, dropped from 29% in 2005-06 to 21.8% in 2012. Wasting fell from 20% in 2005-06 to 15.5% this year. State officials said the scientific methodology of the IIPS and NFHS-3 reports are almost similar and, therefore, comparisons are fair. The report is also learnt to make these comparisons. 
    The IIPS-UNICEF Comprehensive Nutrition Survey studies more than just malnutrition indicators and was independently carried out to help review the implementation of various programmes across Maharashtra. Over the years, the state has introduced measures under the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS) and urban nutrition mission. "The findings are important as they allow the state to draw up a comprehensive nutrition policy," said a senior state official. 
    Malnutrition has been for long one of the biggest challenges faced by the state's health machinery, with government data pegging the death count among children aged up to six at about 1.17 lakh over four years from 2008-09 to 2011-12. 
    Officials in the state's women and child development department attribute the dip to schemes introduced in the tribal belts, including the empowerment of women, tribal crèches and village adoption schemes. "Innovative measures like digital anganwadis, Village Children Development Centres, android phones to communicate information about pregnant mothers and the introduction of mid-upper-arm-circumference techniques have helped," said a senior official in the department. 
    However, some public health experts are accepting the news with cautious optimism. "If the facts stand as they are, then Maharashtra could very well pat itself on the back. However, this kind of improvement in height without a similar corresponding improvement in weight is intriguing. We need to also study deeper the correlation between the IIPS and NFHS data," said Dr Abhay Bang of Search, an organization working in Gadchiroli. 
    Dr Armida Fernandez, of NGO Sneha, said the latest findings are a result of a sustained campaign by the state through the nutrition mission and ICDS. "The drop in stunting is significant as it is an intra-generational phenomenon and needs a sustained effort over a period of time. The government's efforts have finally paid dividends," said Fernandez.