Livemint, 13 November 2014
New Delhi: Undernourishment is not the only factor responsible for stunting among children—where a child’s height is low for his or her age—and with improved access to healthcare and sanitation, India can dramatically reduce the incidence of stunting, according to a World Bank report released on Thursday.
The report, titled Nutrition in India, analyses data from the 2005-06 National Family Health Survey (NFHS) and the 2011 HUNGaMA (Hunger and Malnutrition) survey to show that the rate of stunting in children with adequate feeding, healthcare and environmental health (hygiene and sanitation) is nearly half that among children who don’t get these in adequate measure—23% compared with 52%.
Even in states with poor nutrition outcomes like Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, the prevalence of stunting in children with adequate food, healthcare and hygiene is 30%, compared with 54% among those who are less advantaged, the report said. Read more....