Factors associated with malnutrition among underfive children in developing countries: A review

Abstract

Malnutrition is a consequence of consumption of dietary nutrient either insufficiently or exclusively by especially children. The aim of this study was to carry out a review of malnutrition-dependent factors among under-five children in developing countries. The study was carried out by reviewing publications on researches on malnutrition conducted in Africa and Asia with particular reference to factors associated with malnutrition. It was found that, of the 162 million children under five years who were stunted, 36% of them resided in Africa while 56% were found in Asia. It was also observed that an estimated 60 million under-five children in developing countries were found to be stunted out of which 11 million were Nigerian children. The severity of childhood malnutrition was observed to steadily increase from 11% in 2003 to 18% in 2013 for wasting; 24% in 2003 to 29% in 2013 for underweight, although there was a decline from 42% in 2003 to 37% in 2013 for stunted children. It was observed that high rates of mortality of malnourished children in Sub-saharan Africa result from factors such as low intake of calories, high rates of Human Immuno Virus/Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (HIV/AIDS), political instability, conflicts among groups and poor implementation of government policies. For instance, 50% mortality of malnourished children in Malawi, Burundi and Madagascar were stunted as a result of poor dietary intake or poor consumption of vital nutrient. Other major factors observed were poverty, absence of exclusive breastfeeding, maternal factors such as poor nutrition during pregnancy, lack of appropriate weight gain, poor consumption of vitamin supplement, illness, environmental factors, and socioeconomic/household factors, all of which affect the nutritional status of children. In conclusion, governments of developing countries and the global community should work together to remove these factors.

What does women’s empowerment have to do with malnutrition in Sub-Saharan Africa? Evidence from demographic and health surveys from 30 countries

“…Overall, developing countries had an estimated 60 million under five stunted children [12]. it was also observed that wasting increased from 11% in 2003 to 18% in 2013, underweight from 24% in 2003 to 29% in 2013 while stunted decrease from 42% in 2003 to 37% in 2013 [12]. The rate of malnutrition is a serious source of concern and also due to its potential effect in the later years of children.…”

Malnutrition Research Output: A Bibliometric Analysis for articles Index in Web of Science between 1900 and 2020

“…Beyond the most cited research publications, some of the most prominent authorship and institution were from the United States, England, and Denmark. While recent evidence has identified that most recent global malnutrition cases are prevalent in developing countries [46,47], only Kenya and Bangladesh were among the top authors globally. This exposition suggests a significant dearth of authorship coming from the developing countries represented in the web of science databases.…”

Evidence of Malnutrition and its Associated Factors among Under-five Children in Danko-Wasagu Kebbi State, North-western Nigeria

“…Mother's occupation was associated with underweight and stunting in this study. Nutritional and health status of children can be severely affected by their mothers' occupation (Abbir et al, 2006) possibly because the care needed by the children from working-class mothers may be hindered due to time constraints (Kalu and Etim, 2018).…”