https://imcjms.com Ibrahim Medical College Journal of Medical Science https://imcjms.com/registration/journal_full_text/243 Thu, 06 Jul 2017 09:36:25 +0000 Recent analysis of a total of 8,858 under-two children of the data of National Nutrition Programme baseline survey revealed that 40.5% of the children were stunted (15.6% severely stunted), 35.4% were underweight (11.5% severely underweight) and 17.8% were wasted (3% severely wasted).5 Analysis of the Bangladesh Demographic Health Survey (BDHS) data showed that there has been some improvement in child nutritional status over the past years. The level of stunting has declined from 51% in 2004 and 43% in 2007 to 41% of children under five in 2011. The pattern and change in wasting has been small and inconsistent. It increased from 15% in 2004 to 17% in 2007, and declined to 16% by 2011. The level of underweight has been declining from 43% in 2004, to 41% in 2007, and to 36% in 2011.6 Although there were modest improvements in past decades, the nutritional status of women in Bangladesh is still alarming. The FSNSP data reported that around 28% of Bangladeshi women, having under five children in their families, suffered from chronic energy deficiency (CED).7 Ahmed et al.5 reported that the nutritional status of women in Bangladesh is showing an improving trend. In 1997, 52% of women had CED; since then, a sustained reduction has been observed in the prevalence of CED; the prevalence being 30% in 2007. BDHS data analysis likewise showed that 39.2% of the mothers of under five children were suffering from CED, while 5.6% of them had a BMI less than 16 kg/m2.6 The multifaceted nature of undernutrition means that it may be effectively addressed only when several sectors and strategic efforts are combined together. Ahmed et al.5 recommended that the interventions targeting undernutrition should be scaled up to cover at least 70% of the total population to show tangible outcomes. Community level integrated packages to address hunger and undernutrition in women and children are being implemented across many countries, this consisted mainly of developing cross-sectoral interventions addressing malnutrition and implementing them in targeted areas/vulnerable communities. The main activities included: (1) Growth Monitoring and Promotion (GMP); (2) Intense nutrition, health, and hygiene advocacy; (3) Behaviour Change Communication (BCC) to promote Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF); (4) Improving health and immunization services for women and children; (5) Micronutrient and food supplementation; and (6) Expanding treatment and rehabilitation of severely malnourished children both at community and facility levels. The integrated packages gave equal emphasis to preventive (nutrition and health education), and curative (nutrition rehabilitation centers) strategies and implemented a mix of direct and indirect interventions.     Dr Masuda Mohsena Department of Community Medicine References 2.    Stevens GA, Finucane MM, Paciorek CJ et al. Trends in mild, moderate, and severe stunting and underweight, and progress towards MDG 1 in 141 developing countries: a systematic analysis of population representative data. The Lancet 2012; 380: 824-34. 4.    World Bank. To the MDGs and Beyond: Accountability And Institutional Innovation In Bangladesh. Dhaka: The World Bank 2007. 6.    BDHS. Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey 2011. Dhaka, Bangladesh and Calverton, Maryland, USA: National Institute of Population Research and Training, Mitra and Associates, and Macro International 2011. 8.    ICDDR B. An overview of under-nutrition in Bangladesh. Health and Science Bulletin 2011; 9: 9-16. 2026 Ibrahim Medical College. All rights reserved.