Malnutrition

The Impact of Nutrition / Malnutrition on Child Development

As an educator and mother of two, quality nutrition is at the heart of my ability to properly care for and nurture those under my care. Poverty is an on-going global crisis which contributes to malnutrition. The implementation of Title I, free and reduced breakfast and lunch, in our public schools is an alarming necessity. I have taught in a place where children had nothing to eat, other than the meals they were served at school. 

Good nutrition is said to be the “cornerstone of good health”. Poor nutrition leads to disease, impaired mental and physical development, lowered immunity and lack of productivity. Nutrition is considered the foundation for overall health and physical and mental development. Healthy children are able to learn and thrive. Health adults are better educated, stronger, more productive members of society and help break the cycles of poverty and malnutrition.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO) “Nutrition disorders (malnutrition) can be caused by an insufficient intake of food or of certain nutrients, by an inability of the body to absorb and use nutrients, or by overconsumption of certain foods. Examples include obesity caused by excess energy intake, anemia caused by insufficient intake of iron, and impaired sight because of inadequate intake of vitamin A. Nutrition disorders can be particularly serious in children, since they interfere with growth and development, and may predispose to many health problems, such as infection and chronic diseases.

WHO also reports that “Chronic food deficits affect about 792 million people in the world (FAO 2000), including 20% of the population in developing countries. Worldwide, malnutrition affects one in three people and each of its major forms dwarfs most other diseases globally (WHO, 2000). Malnutrition affects all age groups, but it is especially common among the poor and those with inadequate access to health education and to clean water and good sanitation. More than 70% of children with protein-energy malnutrition live in Asia, 26% live in Africa, and 4% in Latin America and the Caribbean.

“Malnutrition is a major health problem, especially in developing countries. Water supply, sanitation and hygiene, given their direct impact on infectious disease, especially diarrhea, are important for preventing malnutrition. Both malnutrition and inadequate water supply and sanitation are linked to poverty. The impact of repeated or persistent diarrhea on nutrition-related poverty and the effect of malnutrition on susceptibility to infectious diarrhea are reinforcing elements of the same vicious circle, especially amongst children in developing countries.

“Clinically, malnutrition is characterized by inadequate or excess intake of protein, energy, and micronutrients such as vitamins, and the frequent infections and disorders that result.

“People are malnourished if they are unable to utilize fully the food they eat, for example due to diarrhea or other illnesses (secondary malnutrition), if they consume too many calories (overnutrition), or if their diet does not provide adequate calories and protein for growth and maintenance (undernutrition or protein-energy malnutrition).

“Malnutrition in all its forms increases the risk of disease and early death. Protein-energy malnutrition, for example, plays a major role in half of all under-five deaths each year in developing countries (WHO 2000). Severe forms of malnutrition include marasmus (chronic wasting of fat, muscle and other tissues); cretinism and irreversible brain damage due to iodine deficiency; and blindness and increased risk of infection and death from vitamin A deficiency” (WHO 2008).

Ways in which we can help end this crisis are: educating people about healthy diets; improving access to good water and nutritious food supplies throughout the world; better sanitation and hygiene training.  

World Health Organization (WHO) June 2008. Retrieved January 12, 2011 from http://www.who.int/topics/nutrition/en/