3. Symptoms:-
SITE SIGN
Face Moon face (kwashiorkor), simian faces (marasmus)
Eye Dry eyes, pale conjunctiva, spots (vitamin A).
Mouth Angular stomatitis , spongy bleeding gums (vitamin C), parotid enlargement
Teeth Enamel mottling, delayed eruption
Hair Dull, sparse, brittle hair, hypopigmentation, flag sign (alternating bands of light and
normal color
Skin Loose and wrinkled (marasmus), shiny and edematous (kwashiorkor), dry, follicular
hyperkeratosis, patchy hyper- hypopigmentation, erosions, poor wound healing
Nail Thin and soft nail plates, fissures or ridges
Skeletal Deformities usually a result of calcium, vitamin D, or vitamin C deficiencies
Abdomen Distended - hepatomegaly with fatty liver, ascites may be present
Cardiovascular Bradycardia, hypotension, reduced cardiac output
Neurologic Global development delay, loss of knee and ankle reflexes, impaired memory
Hematological Pallor, bleeding diathesis
Behavior Lethargic, apathetic
4. One in every three malnourished
children in the world lives in India.
In India, around 46 per cent of all children below the age of three are too small for
their age, 47 per cent are underweight and at least 16 per cent are wasted. Many of
these children are severely malnourished.
The prevalence of malnutrition varies across states, with Madhya Pradesh recording
the highest rate (55 per cent) and Kerala among the lowest (27 per cent).
Malnutrition in children is not affected by food intake alone; it is also influenced by
access to health services, quality of care for the child and pregnant mother as well as
good hygiene practices.
Girls are more at risk of malnutrition than boys because of their lower social status.
9. The World Bank estimates that India is one of the highest
ranking countries in the world for the number of children
suffering from malnutrition.
The prevalence of underweight children in India is among the
highest in the world, and is nearly double that of Sub-Saharan
Africa with dire consequences for mobility, mortality,
productivity and economic growth.
The 2011 Global Hunger Index (GHI) Report ranked India 15th,
amongst leading countries with hunger situation. It also places
India amongst the three countries where the GHI between 1996
and 2011 went up from 22.9 to 23.7, while 78 out of the 81
developing countries studied, including Pakistan, Nepal,
Bangladesh, Vietnam, Kenya, Nigeria, Myanmar, Uganda,
Zimbabwe and Malawi, succeeded in improving hunger
condition.
MALNUTRITION HOTSPOTS
