Dietary consumption and its effect on nutrition outcome among under-five children in rural Malawi
Kennedy Machira1,2, Tobias Chirwa2
1Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Faculty of Development Studies, Lilongwe, Malawi.
Insights
Exclusive breastfeeding significantly reduces malnutrition in Malawian children under five. Community-based education on infant feeding is crucial for sustainable improvements in child nutrition and health outcomes.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Nutrition
- Public Health
- Malawi Health Studies
Background:
- Malawi has made progress in reducing under-five mortality.
- Under-nutrition remains a significant public health challenge for children under five in Malawi.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine dietary consumption factors affecting under-nutrition in rural Malawian children under five.
- To identify factors influencing the prevalence of under-nutrition.
Main Methods:
- Utilized data from the 2015-16 Malawi Demographic and Health Survey.
- Included 4,150 children with reported under-nutrition statuses.
- Employed nested logistic regression models to analyze influencing factors.
Main Results:
- Exclusive breastfeeding was associated with reduced wasting (OR=0.763), underweight (OR=0.548), and stunting (OR=0.709) in children under five, even after controlling for socioeconomic factors.
- Despite perceived adequate access to nutritious foods and supplements, children under five still experienced high rates of wasting, underweight, and stunting.
Conclusions:
- Extensive pro-rural, community-based educational advocacy is needed.
- Focus on parents, emphasizing exclusive breastfeeding and consistent dietary intake is essential.
- Sustainable solutions require addressing persistent under-nutrition challenges through targeted interventions.
Background:
Despite remarkable progress in reducing under five mortalities in Malawi, a relative proportion of under nutrition among children still exist.
Objectives:
The study examines dietary consumption factors and their effect on under nutrition outcomes among children under five years' children in rural Malawi.
Methods:
Using the 2015-16 Malawi Demographic and Health Survey, in which 4,150 children were reported of under nutrition statuses, the study used nested logistic regression models to estimate factors influencing the prevalence of under nutrition among children.
Results:
Based on the results, exclusive breast feeding among children under five years, after controlling for parental socioeconomic factors, was found to reduce the levels of wasting (ODDS RATIO [OR] = 0.763; p < 0.05), underweight (OR = 0.548; p < 0.001) and stunting (OR = 0.709; p < 0.005). Furthermore, it was found that despite the perceived adequacy among women in accessing fruits and vegetables, carbohydrates and micro-nutrient supplements, their children under five years, still experiences public health challenges and suffers from wasting, underweight and stunting.
Conclusion:
There is need to implement extensive pro-rural under five nutritional and health educational advocacy using community-based approaches, targeting parents, emphasizing the significance of exclusive breast feeding and consistencies in giving dietary foods, if and only if the persistent public health challenges due to under nutrition among children under five years, is to be sustainably dealt with, in Malawi.
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