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| Soya nutrition for
pre-school children(Anganawadi) pregnant women &
lactating mothers |
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3.
PROTEIN MALNUTRITION AMONG YOUNG CHILDREN IN INDIA |
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| 1. |
A number of nutritional surveys carried out during the past 30 years in India have shown wide spread
occurrence of protein malnutrition among young and growing children. The percentage of people below ICMR (Indian Council of Medical research) recommended level of intake of proteins in Karnataka is reported to be 50% in urban areas and 40% in rural areas. |
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| 2. |
It is reported in the poor income group that almost 80% of the children are suffering from moderate to severe degrees of malnutrition in India. About three-fourth of the pre-school children have body weights below 75% of normal weights. |
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| 3. |
Several investigations have shown that malnutrition adversely affects the growth rate of children. The Oxford Child Health Survey of 650 children observed from birth to 5 years of age showed that children not suffering from malnutrition were one inch taller than those who had experienced illness & malnutrition. A large number of studies carried out by many workers in various developing countries have shown that supplementary feeding programmes help to improve the growth & nutritional status of pre-school children. |
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| 4. |
Studies suggest that malnutrition could stop cell division and cause stunted growth and impaired function of the brain and the body. Inadequate nutrition during the critical period of rapid growth can cause irreversible damage to the brain and health of the child. Mothers of these unfortunate children often fail to notice this growth retardation which takes place slowly and silently. |
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Permanent deficits in the physical structure of the brain could be produced by undernutrition at the most vulnerable period. The criteria used are the DNA content as an index of cell number and cholesterol as an index of myelin. These results are briefly discussed below – |
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| a. |
It has been recently shown as a result of
analysing the anatomic regions of the brain that there
is a much greater cell deficit in some regions than in
others. The greatest deficit is in the fastest growing
regions, predominantly in the cerebellum. The cell loss
is not uniform and this probably makes it a much more
significant factor. |
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| b. |
It has also been found that if malnutrition has retarded the physical growth, the physiological processes of brain development themselves are quantitatively restricted and on subsequent feeding with adequate nutrition in the diet, the brain has no capability for making good the deficit. In other words, the developing brain has a once–and-for-all opportunity to accomplish certain important developmental processes, which must be completed at the most appropriate time under the best conditions. Otherwise, there will be persisting deficits into the adult life. |
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| c. |
Studies have also been carried out by some workers on the effects of malnutrition and under nutrition on the development & functioning of the central nervous system in experimental animals. These studies have proved that malnutrition is capable of producing physical, biochemical and functional changes in the central nervous system. |
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| d. |
Studies by several groups of workers have shown that malnutrition can affect significantly the intelligence and learning capacity of children. Cabak and Najadanvic (1965) tested a group of 36 children who had suffered from malnutrition in their pre-school years and found that about half of them scored below the accepted limit of normal intelligence. Cravioto (1966) reported that children who have recovered from severe malnutrition proved very much inferior to normal well-nourished of the same age group with respect to their mental development and learning capacity. |
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| 5. |
While the nutritional status of other countries are far improving, the situation is quite stagnant in India. U.S. Soldiers today are taller and broader than those of second world war. The average height of children in Europe has been increased by 4 inches by proper nutrition. The soya eating Chinese of the North are larger and healthier than rice eating Chinese of the South. The average height of 7 year old boys in Japan has increased by 2 ½ inches during the last 30 years, as evident from the table given below: |
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HEIGHT OF 7 YEAR BOYS (in cms.) |
| Country |
1955 |
1988 |
| Japan |
116.00 (1957) |
122.30 |
| India |
113.30 |
113.30 (1988-90) |
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| 6. |
In the early stages, protein deficiency may not be noticed. Research reports indicate that people on low protein diets tend to be small, but their functioning is not affected. Children tend to have retarded growth, but this may not be noticed, if all children from the neighbourhood are of small stature due to protein deficiency. Further, it may also result in thin, lanky bodies in teens. |
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