Nutritional Intervention on Malnutrition in 2-6 Years Old Children in Iranshahr City, Iran

Malnutrition is one of the main reasons for child deaths in developing countries. More than 90% of children suffering from malnutrition live in developing countries. The present study was carried out to assess the effects of nutritional intervention based on a cooked meal for120 days on malnutrition status among 2-6 years old children of Iranshahr’s rural nurseries.  In this interventional study, 1115 children; including 603 girls and 512 boys aged from 24 to 72 months, were studied in rural nurseries. The growth status of children, including weights, heights, and body mass index (BMI), were measured  before and after giving a cooked meal, which included 250 Kcal of energy per meal, 15 grams of protein, 25 grams of carbohydrates and 10 grams of fat. After 120 days; the weight-for-age, height-for-age, and body mass index (BMI)-for-age of the children were measured and compared before and after the intervention, based on the WHO standard and the z-score, using Chi-square and paired t-test.  The prevalence of underweight (weight-for-age), stunting (height-for-age), and wasting (BMI-for-age ) before the intervention were 63%, 58.5%, and 29.6%, respectively, , and after the intervention were 58%, 58.8%, and 22.9%, respectively. The prevalence of underweight and wasting reduced significantly (P <0.05) but, there was not improvement in height for age of children (short stature) (P <0.05).  Nutritional intervention had a significant effect on weight-for-age and body mass index-for -age in the growth process of children, but there was no significant effect on height-for-age index.