Prevalence of Malnutrition under Five Years in Chadegan (Area District City) Iran 2011

Abstract

Background & Objectives: Malnutrition among children under five year is a significant public health index. The aim of study was to estimate the prevalence of malnutrition in under 5 years old children in Chadegan (area district city) parish of in Isfahan, Iran. Methods: This was a community-based cross-sectional study. It was carried out on all randomly selected households with children age under five years old in rural and urban area of Chadegan in 2010 year. Demographic information was collected via household and a standardized questionnaire was administered to mothers or guardians and trained personnel measured weight and height or length. Results: The results revealed that prevalence of malnutrition’s based on wasting, underweighting and stunting and obesity were 17.8%, 34.5%, 37% and 2.2% respectively. The main contributing factors for wasting were found to be child’s age, habitat, onset of complementary food, history of disease, hospitalization (P<0.05). Gender, father's job, mother’s education, ethnic, habitat, history of disease were found to be correlated with stunting as well. (P< 0.05). Conclusion: Development programs should focus on the disadvantaged rural and urban arears of people to improve their nutritional status. Intervention strategies and programs should be developed to target the preventable risk factors.

Keywords

• Malnutrition; Underweighting; Stunting; Wasting
• Iran