What determines the decline of wasting in the Philippines

In the past three decades, the prevalence of under-5 wasting in the Philippines has generally fluctuated between 6% and 8%. However, between 2013 and 2018, the decline in the wasting prevalence (-2.3 percentage points) in the Philippines was sharp and statistically significant. Still, the numbers remain substantial, with around 630,000 children in the Philippines still affected by wasting, who could be at risk of mortality. Thus, this progress must be sustained to meet targets, including the Sustainable Development Goals (Goal #1, prevalence of child malnutritionmanifesting as wasting at 3.9%).

Using the 2013 and 2018 rounds of the National Nutrition Survey (NNS), we identified the factors contributing to this decline during these periods using the Oaxaca-Blinder decomposition model.

We found that total energy, wealth quintile, and maternal nutrition status have sufficient statistical evidence to determine weight-for-height Z-score (wasting) and the improvement in the economic outcomes of household (wealth), maternal nutrition status, and energy intake could explain in part the improvement in the wasting status of children in the Philippines between 2013 and 2018.

Sustaining public efforts for maternal and child health during the critical window of opportunity, along with addressing underlying and enabling determinants such as adequate food and health services, optimal feeding practices, and having sufficient resources is critical in further reducing the wasting prevalence in the country. Further studies to examine other factors including child morbidity and diet diversity are recommended to assess if they could explain the rest of the gap in wasting prevalence during this period.