UN Study Says Two Million Children Acutely Malnourished In Bangladesh

March 30, 2009 5:08 a.m. EST

Dhaka, Bangladesh (AHN) - Two million children aged six months to five years are affected by acute malnutrition in Bangladesh, a United Nation study said on Sunday.

"One in four households in Bangladesh is food insecure. Out of those two million malnourished children, half a million are suffering from severe acute malnutrition a highly vulnerable condition where the child needs appropriate management and treatment," the survey, jointly conducted by WFP, UNICEF and the Institute of Public Health Nutrition (IPHN), added.

Given that the nationwide survey was carried out during a harvest season, the malnutrition levels are expected to be even higher during periods of food scarcity, it noted.

According to the survey, 58 percent of the households claimed that they had insufficient food during the last twelve months. Real household income dropped by 12 per cent between 2005 and 2008.

At the end of 2008, food expenditure represented 62 per cent of total household expenditure, 10 percentage points higher than the national average of 2005.

"To cope with higher food prices, people have got themselves into a deeper spiral of debt from which it will take months to recover," the study added.

The survey showed a clear link between malnutrition and household food insecurity. The food insecure households had also higher percentages of malnourished children.

Almost half of the surveyed children aged six months to five years are stunted (48.6 percent) - too short for their age - which depicts a very high prevalence of chronic malnutrition - one of the highest in South Asia.

Besides, 37.4 percent of the same children are also underweight.

Barisal and Rajshahi divisions presented the highest acute malnutrition rates (wasting), exceeding the WHO emergency threshold of 15 percent. These same two divisions had the largest percentages of households that were food insecure - Barisal, 26 per cent and Rajshahi 31 percent.

Chronic malnutrition (stunting) was found highest in Sylhet division. Rural areas presented higher rates of all three types of malnutrition (wasting, stunting and underweight) when compared to urban areas, the joint survey added.