Nutrition interventions for children aged less than 5 years following natural disasters: a systematic review

Abstract

ObjectivesThe objective of this paper was to review various nutritional interventions targeted at under-five children in countries that had suffered from natural disasters and to analyse their effect on nutrition-related outcomes.DesignSystematic review.SettingCountries that had suffered from natural disasters.ParticipantsChildren aged <5 years who were given any nutritional intervention to improve overall nutritional status after a natural disaster.Primary and secondary outcome measuresPrimary nutrition-related outcomes were stunting, wasting and underweight. The secondary nutrition-related outcome was anaemia.ResultsOf the 1218 studies that the reviewers agreed on, five matched the inclusion criteria and were included in this narrative synthesis. Four studies were longitudinal and one was cross-sectional in design. Food supplementation was an integral part of nutritional interventions in all the included studies. The most consistent nutritional outcome in all five included studies was reduced prevalence of wasting, followed by reduced prevalence of underweight in four, stunting in three and anaemia in one of the five included studies. The largest reduction in the prevalence of wasting and underweight was reported by the study in Sri Lanka. Overall, the quality of evidence ranged from moderate to weak.ConclusionsIntegrated nutrition interventions using locally available health resources yielded the best results. However, sound evidence on the most effective interventions is still lacking. Intervention studies with comparison groups are necessary to obtain more robust evidence on the effectiveness of nutrition interventions.

Impact of COVID-19 on child malnutrition, obesity in women and household food insecurity in underserved urban settlements in Sri Lanka: a prospective follow-up study

“…Current wasting prevalence is above both the national average of 15•3 % and WHO critical level threshold of 15•0 % (20) . Although the risk of COVID-19 complications may be lower in children, the potential impact of reduced immunity associated with wasting should not be underestimated in this population (21) . Furthermore, it poses a grave concern due to the protracted course of the COVIDpandemic.…”

Nutritional resilience in Nepal following the earthquake of 2015

“…Although we were not able to find similar age-cohort patterns in our data, it is possible that more time is needed for such patterns to become apparent. Our study provides one of the first examinations of the impact of earthquakes on nutrition in a low income Asian context, made possible by the presence of a system that allowed for more frequent data collection, comparable cross-sectional samples with a longitudinal component, and a wide range of indicators to facilitate detailed examination of nutrition and its influencing factors [ 33 ].…”

Anthropometric Parameters among Children Under 6 Years with Stunting

“…Among the most important reasons for this lack of information, it is the difficult to interpret anthropometric data in these age groups. It contains the rapid changes in somatic growth, problems of dealing with variations in maturation, and difficulties separating normal variations from those associated with health risks (Pradhan et al, 2016). Furthermore, the use and interpretation of indicator anthropometric parameters such as height-for-age z scores (HAZs) for characterizing growth patterns have been a debated subject (Akombi et al, 2017).…”

“…Stunting has long-term effects, such as lower academic performance, decreased workability, and poor pregnancy outcomes. Stunting affects approximately one-third of children under five worldwide, with a higher incidence in low-resource countries in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia (Pradhan, Dhital, & Subhani, 2016;Sitorus, Natalia, Purba, Mutahar, & Fujianti, 2019).…”