Under-five malnutrition in a South-Eastern Nigeria metropolitan city

Exploring disparities in malnutrition among under-five children in Nigeria and potential solutions: a scoping review

Introduction

Triple burden of malnutrition in children remains a significant public health issue. This scoping review aims to assess the information on undernutrition, micronutrient deficiencies and the quality of complementary feeding in various regions in Nigeria.

Methods

A literature search was conducted using PubMed and Google Scholar databases from January 1, 2018 to January 31, 2023 to include studies focusing on 0 to 5 years old children in Nigeria, reporting data on nutritional status, nutrient deficiencies, and published in English.

Results

73 out of 1,545 articles were included. Stunting remained alarmingly high ranging from 7.2% (Osun, South West) to 61% (Kaduna, North Central), while wasting varied from 1% (Ibadan, South West) to 29% (FCT Abuja, Central) and underweight from 5.9% (Osun, South West) to 42.6% (Kano, North West) respectively. The overall prevalence of anemia and vitamin A deficiency ranged between 55.2 to 75.1 % and 5.3 to 67.6%, respectively. Low rates of achieving minimum dietary diversity and minimum meal frequency were reported across different states depicting the suboptimal quality of complementary feeding. The prevalence of overweight/obesity ranged from 1.5% (Rivers, South South) to 25.9% (Benue, North Central).

Conclusion

Multiple early childhood malnutrition issues exist with a wide disparity across states in Nigeria, particularly in the Northern region. Targeted nutrition interventions must be implemented to improve the situation.

Nutritional knowledge and practices of mothers with malnourished children in a regional hospital in Northeast Namibia

Background

An estimated 159 million children under five are affected by malnutrition, with an additional 101 million children under five being underweight in sub-Saharan Africa. In Namibia, 24% of children under age 5 are stunted and 8% are severely stunted. The Kavango region has the highest rate of stunting (38.8%) in the country.

Objective

The purpose of the study was to determine and describe the nutritional knowledge and practices of mothers with malnourished children regarding feeding at Rundu Intermediate Hospital, Kavango East Region, Namibia.

Materials and Methods

A quantitative cross-sectional research design was used. A convenience sampling technique was used to select 199 mothers with malnourished children who were admitted to the pediatric ward. Data were collected via self-administered questionnaires with closed-ended questions.

Results

51.8% of the mothers had correct nutritional knowledge regarding breastfeeding for six months before giving other food, and 74.4% believed that newborns should be initiated to breastfeeding within an hour after birth, while the same number breastfed their babies on demand. Furthermore, 35.6% of the participants followed appropriate practices regarding feeding.

Conclusions

Most mothers (51.8%) had appropriate nutritional knowledge. However, only a minority (35.6%) of the mothers had the appropriate practices regarding feeding their children. Hence, there was a knowledge/practice mismatch regarding the significance of exclusive breastfeeding during the first six months, and generally the vitality of breast milk to the child. These findings may be used to develop strategies and target interventions to create awareness among mothers regarding effective breastfeeding practices.

NCD epidemic and sexual reproductive health issues in the infectious disease world

Nil.