‘Number of malnutrition affected children on raise in Ghor’

FEROZKOH (Pajhwok): Over 300 child-malnutrition cases registered in western Ghor province in the first six months of the ongoing year, physicians in the Provincial Hospital said on Wednesday.

What is malnutrition?

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), malnutrition refers to deficiencies or excesses in nutrient intake, imbalance of essential nutrients or impaired nutrient utilization.

The double burden of malnutrition consists of undernutrition and overweight and obesity, as well as diet-related noncommunicable diseases.

Malnutrition in most cases shows itself with extreme thinness, but this is its outward sign. Sometimes, other signs such as low weight, prominent bones, fat and wasted muscle, thin arms and legs with edema (swelling with fluid) in the abdomen and face, weakness and fatigue, dry skin, brittle hair and low temperature are also used to diagnose it.

Malnutrition patients in Afghanistan

According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) report in Afghanistan severity levels of hunger & malnutrition remained extremely high.

The report said some 15.5M people are facing acute food insecurity, with 2.7 million people, in ‘emergency’ level.

It added some 3.2 million children & 840,000 pregnant & nursing mothers are suffering from severe/moderate acute malnutrition.

Mohammad Naseer Parsa, the provincial hospital chief physician, said: “Unfortunately, 16 children have died in the past six months due to malnutrition and over 300 had referred to the hospital for treatment and this process was on the raise.”

He said the number of children suffering from malnutrition in this province is increasing.

He linked surge in malnutrition among children with poverty, deteriorated economic situation of families, unemployment and lack of awareness among families.

Dr. Parsa linked the outbreak of diarrhea as one of the factor of malnutrition among children and added with growing heat the number of patients suffering from diarrhea also increased.

Atiqullah Akbari, the Malnutrition Department head, told Pajhwok Afghan News: “A child who is born in the first step should be nurtured with the mother’s milk, which a complete food, the child should be fed with breast milk for six months and then with other foods, one of the reasons that cause malnutrition in children. It may be economic poverty and still families do not have enough knowledge about feeding their children.”

Zarnigar, mother of one of the child suffering from Malnutrition, said: “From the past three weeks our child is hospitalized and we came from Allah Yar district to the hospital, he is not eating anything, he is thin and weak, the doctors are checking him, but he is not getting better yet, we are asking the government and doctors to check the condition of our children better.”

Maryam, the visitor of a patient, said: “There are not clinics in Allah Yar district, there is no resources, no proper physicians, the distance between clinics and hospital is wider, doctors are trying their best but our children are not getting better.”

She said due to economic problems her child suffered from malnutrition.

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