JOIN USMalnourished children from vulnerable communities suffer from obesity: ISEC study
Children from vulnerable communities are suffering the double burden of malnutrition, where under-nutrition coexists with obesity, as cheap processed food is substituted for proper meals.
Researchers from Institute of Social and Economic Change (ISEC) studied children of construction workers in 14 areas across Bengaluru and discovered the changing dynamics of malnutrition.
A total of 277 children aged between less than 1 year and 5 years participated in the study which measured their health parametres against the standards set by the World Health Organisation.
Channamma Kambara, S Manasi and Malini L Tantri, all assistant professors at ISEC, conducted the field survey before the pandemic before publishing their study recently. The findngs will be part of a larger report funded by the World Food Programme's India unit.
They found that 31 children (11.2%) suffered from stunting, the existing notion of malnutrition. However, a shocking 199 children (71.8%) were found to be overweight. "This figure challenges the existing notion wherein malnutrition is always used in synonymous with under-nutrition," said the report.
The study attributes the emergence of double burden malnutrition (DBM) to multiple factors but the main problem was the lack of access to nutritious food.
"About 52% of the participant children got food at anganwadis or schools. Many couldn't get the mid-day meal mainly because their parents worked in an area that is far from an anganwadi. There were also other factors at play," Malini Tantri told DH.
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On the other hand, easy access to processed foods that are very cheap, lack of sanitation and lack of physical activity due to easy access to other forms of entertainment were giving a push to DBM. "Our study area showed the use of processed foods like ready-to-eat noodles, chips and biscuits as rampant," they said.
Stressing the need to change the conventional parameter of assuring nutrition security, the study said policies need to address the new phenomenon of overweight and malnutrition existing together in children from vulnerable communities. "Any attempt to address issues surrounding DBM will also facilitate achievement of sustainable development goals," it said.
It recommended increasing the reach of anganwadis to make them proactive, implementation of one nation one ration card and boosting the role of non governmental organisations.
"In addition, in times of crisis like pandemic, there is a need to set up a mechanism to monitor the regular supply of midday meals to children," Malini added.
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