Beware of Stunting, Moms Need to Know 5 Things about Malnourished Children

Hi moms, lately you often don’t hear the term stunting? Well, stunting is closely related to malnourished children. Instead of being confused, let’s find out about the lack of nutrition in children.

The danger of stunting

Stunting is a chronic or long-term nutritional problem in toddlers characterized by shorter height compared to children of the same age.

So what is the danger if the baby suffers from stunting? Stunting can cause the baby to be more susceptible to disease, even after adulthood is at risk for degenerative diseases. Not only that moms, even stunting also affects the level of children’s intelligence, you know.

Also Read: Don’t Underestimate, Recognize the Types of Headaches You Need to Know

Child malnutrition leads to stunting

Stunting itself is one of the consequences that occurs due to malnutrition that occurs in children. Here are five things you need to know about malnutrition.

First, the rate of undernutrition in Indonesia is still high

The 2018 Basic Health Research (Riskesdas) showed that 17.7% of children under five in Indonesia are underweight or malnourished. This means that almost 1 in 5 children in Indonesia are underweight or malnourished.

Second, the high rate of stunting or short toddlers 

In addition to being underweight, many children in Indonesia are also stunted. Riskesdas data shows that almost 1 in 3 children in Indonesia are in the short category, with 11.5% of all children in Indonesia in the very short category.

Third, the symptoms of undernutrition 

Undernourished children usually have a low appetite, often suffer from recurrent illnesses or if they have an injury it takes a long time to heal. The child may also become irritable/cranky, or even uninterested in interaction or appear lethargic throughout the day.

Also Read: Let’s Start Implementing a Diet to Prevent Gallstones

Fourth, malnutrition can be dangerous

Some circumstances can make malnourished children require medical treatment, such as infection and low body temperature / hypothermia.

Fifth, addressing undernutrition and malnutrition

If the baby is malnourished, moms should consult the nearest medical personnel. Some treatments for children with undernutrition and malnutrition are the administration of fluids and electrolytes to overcome dehydration, administration of vitamin A, as well as multivitamins and minerals such as folic acid. In addition, regular monitoring of nutritional status is needed.

Consult your health condition at Good Doctor. Let’s do an online consultation with a trusted doctor!