Journal of Epidemiology and Global Health

Volume 9, Issue 1, March 2019, Pages 19 - 22

Malnutrition and Childhood Illness among 1–5-year-old Children in an Urban Slum in Faridabad: A Cross-Sectional Study

Authors
Goyal Pooja1, Lukhmana Shveta1, *, Dixit Shivam1, Singh Abhishek2
1Department of Community Medicine, ESIC Medical College & Hospital, NH-3, NIT, Faridabad, Haryana, India
2Department of Community Medicine, Shahid Hasan Khan Mewati College, Nalhar, Mewat, Haryana, India
*Corresponding author. Email: shvetalukhmana@gmail.com
Corresponding Author
Lukhmana Shveta
Received 24 March 2017, Accepted 22 November 2017, Available Online 27 March 2019.
DOI
10.2991/jegh.k.190212.001How to use a DOI?
Keywords
Community-based; malnutrition; respiratory illness; children aged <5 years; urban slum
Abstract

A community-based, cross-sectional study was conducted among 202 children aged 1–5 years residing in an urban slum to study the extent of malnutrition and its association with common childhood illness(es). The participants were selected using convenient sampling (nonprobability), and the appropriate respondents were interviewed using a structured, semi-open-ended, pretested, interviewer-administered questionnaire. The prevalence of undernutrition (weight for age), stunting (height for age), and wasting (weight for height) were calculated at the cutoff level of ≤2 standard deviation (Z-score <−2) of the National Centre for Health Statistics (NCHS) reference median values. Data were analyzed using appropriate tests of significance. The mean age of participants was 33.9 ± 13.9 months. The proportion of undernutrition, stunting, and wasting among was found to be 29.2%, 66.8%, and 12.9%, respectively. Respiratory illness (56.9%) was reportedly the most common morbidity among participants. A higher proportion of children who reportedly suffered from viral fever in past 3 months were wasted, and this association was found to be statistically significant (p = 0.003). The alarming rate of malnutrition reiterates the synergistic relationship between common infections and malnutrition. It is, therefore, imperative to emphasize and strengthen the role of nutritional interventions as outlined by the World Health Organization (WHO) Integrated Management of Childhood Illness as part of case management for infectious diseases among children aged <5 years.

Copyright
© 2019 Atlantis Press International B.V.
Open Access
This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY-NC 4.0 license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/).

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Journal
Journal of Epidemiology and Global Health
Volume-Issue
9 - 1
Pages
19 - 22
Publication Date
2019/03/27
ISSN (Online)
2210-6014
ISSN (Print)
2210-6006
DOI
10.2991/jegh.k.190212.001How to use a DOI?
Copyright
© 2019 Atlantis Press International B.V.
Open Access
This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY-NC 4.0 license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/).

Cite this article

TY  - JOUR
AU  - Goyal Pooja
AU  - Lukhmana Shveta
AU  - Dixit Shivam
AU  - Singh Abhishek
PY  - 2019
DA  - 2019/03/27
TI  - Malnutrition and Childhood Illness among 1–5-year-old Children in an Urban Slum in Faridabad: A Cross-Sectional Study
JO  - Journal of Epidemiology and Global Health
SP  - 19
EP  - 22
VL  - 9
IS  - 1
SN  - 2210-6014
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/jegh.k.190212.001
DO  - 10.2991/jegh.k.190212.001
ID  - Pooja2019
ER  -