Malnutrition: Still Persistently and Unacceptably High in India

By Mithilesh Kumar Sinha | EMN

Poor nutrition is poor economics. Poor nutrition is poor humanity. Nutrition should be clearly stated as an important input and output parameter for judging development and should not be treated as trickle down beneficiary of economic and industrial development. It should not get subsumed under curative or preventive health care in general, where emphasis tends to be on chronic diseases and immunization–important as they are. Without Nutrition, neither communicable nor non-communicable diseases can be prevented and hence it should have an important status as an independent entity. Malnutrition is the worst form of non-communicable disease. At the global level, nutrition is recognised as key in enabling sustainable development

The latest Global Nutrition Report 2017 found the vast majority (about 88%) of countries studied face a serious burden of two or three of these forms of malnutrition Globally, 2 billion people lack key micronutrients like iron and vitamin A. 155 million children are stunted. 52 million children are wasted. 2 billion adults are overweight or obese. 41 million children are overweight. 88% of countries face a serious burden of either two or three forms of malnutrition. 1 in 3 people are malnourished. Globally, over 614 million women between the reproductive ages of 15-49 years are anaemic.

India is facing a serious burden of malnutrition as well as obesity. Despite the efforts of the government, the nutrition and hygiene standards of India continue to remain poor. The latest Global Nutrition Report 2017 placed India at the bottom of the table in a pool of 140 countries. India leads the way with 51 percent women suffering from anaemia. India is followed by China, Pakistan, Nigeria and Indonesia.

India is facing a serious threat of under-nutrition where more than half of the women of reproductive age suffer from anaemia. According to the State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2017report, the number of undernourished people in the world increased to an estimated 815 million in 2016, up from 777 million in 2015. Data from the report showed that India is home to 190.7 million of them—a 14.5% prevalence of hunger vis-a-vis its total population.

The numbers are disappointing. About 38 per cent of the children under five are affected by stunting and about 21 per cent of children under 5 have been defined as ‘wasted’ or ‘severely wasted’ – which means that they do not weigh enough for their height. Moreover, 51 per cent of the women of reproductive age suffer from anemia and more than 22 per cent of adult women are overweight. The percentage of overweight men in the country is slightly lower and stands at 16 per cent of adult men.

Overweight and obesity are on the increase in almost every country In India, 16 per cent of adult men and 22 per cent adult women are overweight, says GNR-2017.

Malnutrition is the single largest factor contributing to child mortality. It makes children fatally vulnerable to diarrhoea, malaria and respiratory infections. According to health experts, more than 50% of child mortality under five years of age can be attributed to malnutrition. And for those who survive, they remain vulnerable for the rest of their lives, which, in any case, cannot be normal—worse, they are just one illness away from plunging back into poverty or deeper into it as the case may be.

The report further states the dismal state of nutrition in the country. 69 percent of children under the age of 5 years are anaemic and 45 percent of adolescent girls have a low body mass index. Over 38% of children in India have stunted growth while another 21 percent have a wasted growth. Despite this, one in every 5 women in the country is obese.

Nutrition should become a priority issue at national and sub-national levels. The need to systemically address underlying causes of malnutrition in India is an urgency that cannot be postponed for the following reasons: One, poor nutrition is poor economics. Poor nutrition is poor humanity. The World Bank estimates that India loses 2-3 per cent of its annual GDP by way of lower productivity, the underlying cause of which is malnutrition. We need a radical overhaul of our community outreach programmes to meet the needs of the very young, pay close attention to women’s health, invest in preventive public health services such as clean water and sanitation, provide farm incentives to promote food diversity, and launch an effective nutrition education campaign to ensure that young children are fed adequately.

For health and nutrition security there has to be Awareness, and Access at Affordable Cost to Balanced diet at household and individual level, knowledge of right feeding practices, clean environment and safe drinking water, and health care outreach- primary and curative. Education, particularly of women is important for optimum utilisation of the available services and creating demand. For under nutrition, especially, major efforts are needed to close the inequality gap.”