Clinico-epidemiological and anthropometric profile of rural preschool children in central kerala

Background: Nutritional status of children below the age of five years is a sensitive indicator of the overall development of the community. Under-nutrition among under-five children is one of the greatest public health problems in developing countries. According to UNICEF, 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 objective of the present study is to determine the epidemiological, clinical, and anthropometric profile of rural preschool children.
Materials and methods: A cross sectional study was conducted among 360 under-five children in five selected wards (clusters) of Varandarapilly panchayath in Thrissur district. After getting written informed consent from the parents, they were interviewed using pretested semi structured interview schedule. The questionnaire covered the socio-demographic characteristics, dietary practices, and morbidity profile of children. For assessing nutritional status, clinical examination and measurement anthropometric measurements like, height, weight, mid-upper arm circumference, head circumference and chest circumference of the children were done using standard protocols.
Results: Mean age of the study population was found to be 33.61 ± 16.15 months. There were 176(48.9) males and 184(51.1) females in the study. The overall prevalence of under-weight was found to be 28.3% and that of stunting 14%. There were 49 (13.6%) children in the study group who were both under-weight and stunted. The proportion of underweight and stunting was found to be higher among females than among males. The calorie consumption was not adequate (<80% of RDA) in majority (66.9%) of the children in the study group. 58.1% children were consuming a diet which was inadequate in protein. Clinical examination of study subjects showed that 196 (54.4%) children had one or the other clinical signs of nutritional deficiency.
Conclusion: The present study showed a moderately high prevalence of underweight and stunting among the under-five children, with a clear gender difference in their anthropometric profiles. The dietary consumption of calories and proteins were far below requirement, which is clinically manifested as macronutrient and micronutrient deficiency in the study group.