Dr. A.M.M.Anisul Awwal, PhD :
A thorough review of literature has revealed that the populations of the developing countries are the worst sufferers of malnutrition. Women and the minor children are the primary victims as depicted by low Body Mass Index (BMI 18.5 or less is considered as chronic malnutrition) and high incidence of Low Birth Weight (LBW- Birth weight 2500 gm or less) respectively. In the developing countries, on an average, more than 60 percent of the women of child bearing age (WCBA) have been suffering from nutritional anemia, about 20 percent of them have some degree of Iodine Deficiency Disorders (IDDs), Vitamin ‘A’ deficiency disorders are still a major contributing factor for disease and illness and so on. The prevalence of Protein Energy Malnutrition (PEM) is still the single most important factor contributing death (about 55 percent of child mortality in the developing countries are directly attributable to malnutrition) among the under five children.
The population explosion in the sixties, seventies and eighties created a true havoc for the overall development of the country.
The co-existence of extreme dearth of natural resources, inadequate infra-structure to provide basic human services recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), malnutrition of various forms, unacceptably high prevalence of both communicable and non-communicable diseases, lack of imposition of law, rampant corruption, unstable political situation, overall poor management skills, etc. have hindered the desired or predicted development of the country. The annual population growth rate was between 1.7 – 1.9 percent which was very high in comparison to the economic growth rate and corresponding inputs for poverty reduction.
Even in 1990s and 2000, Maternal Mortality Rate (MMR) was around 200 per 100,000 live births and Infant Mortality Rate (IMR) was about 50 per 1000 live births and other negative demographic indicators / factors were much higher than the minimum expectations. Recognizing all the negative indices for development, the national goals and objectives were set for the millennium development goals. Many of these indicators of social and human development still do not depict a promising and enthusiastic picture with respect to the Quality of Life Index (QLI) of the population. The trends in population growth, disease burden, treatment cost, living expenses, mortality, internal migration, and last but not the least, irreparable and crippling disorders of malnutrition are persistently creating hurdles in overall national development. To address the unfinished tasks of the millennium development goals and address the new challenges, the country has signed the document called ‘sustainable development goals’.
It has been revealed in many studies and research documents that malnutrition is the most important factor that hinders substantially the overall socio-economic growth of a nation. The developed world has considered malnutrition as cancer for growth and development of a nation even in the early 20th century.
Malnutrition is a term often used both for ‘under’ and ‘over’ nutrition and specific nutrient deficiencies. Hunger and malnutrition persist in spite of important achievements in agricultural productivity and economic growth. ‘Chronic hunger’, which is largely found in the low-income food-deficit countries, results from continuous inadequate food intake and is perpetuated by poverty.
Malnutrition, which results from a combination of inadequate food, lack of health facilities and inadequate caring practices, primarily affects the more vulnerable population in a household, mainly women and children. Poor maternal nutrition results in Low Birth Weight (LBW), which in turn puts at higher risk of death, morbidity, growth retardation during childhood and adolescence, lower IQ, and thus, perpetuates the cycle of malnutrition across generations.
On the other hand, development has been defined in many ways. The most common and widely accepted definition of development includes not only economic aspect of development, but also the overall reduction of IMR, MMR, improvement of nutritional status, health status, percentage of literacy and school going children, life expectancy at birth, etc. Recently, almost all the nations have accepted the definition of development provided by UNDP which basically refers to the quality of life index.
Malnutrition is widespread among children. Stunting which means long-term growth failure due to chronic malnutrition reflects the cumulative effects of chronically insufficient food intake, lack of caring practices and inadequate health services with or without recurrent infections. On the other hand, wasting, (progressively weaker) which is deficit in tissues and fat mass resulting in excessive thinness – an indicator of acute malnutrition can develop very rapidly as a result of sudden reductions in food consumption, such as starvation or famine.
Foundation of a building is considered as the most important aspect of building both in terms of its longevity and safety. Similarly, ‘nutrition’ is considered, for humans, as the foundation of ‘health’, and health is the backbone of a nation.
Without an acceptable nutritional status of the population of the country, no nation can expect to be a ‘healthy nation’. Human brain development and immune systems fully depends on the nutritional status of the individual, and thus, nutrition is the basic determinant of overall socio-economic development.
It is a proven reality that education plays a pivotal role in determining nutritional status of the population, especially, maternal and paternal (years of) formal schooling have a direct relationship with nutrition. Prevalence of malnutrition decreases with increasing number of years of formal education.
Now, time has come to recognize the importance of nutrition in personal and national life. The health, nutrition and population programs of both government and non- government sectors should put proper emphasis to reduce the extent and the magnitude of malnutrition.
(PID-UNICEF Feature)
