Acute malnutrition hits Sarlahi children

By Our Correspondent, Sarlahi, July 28: Children in 18 local levels of Sarlahi have been found suffering from acute malnutrition.

According to data released by the Family Welfare Division under the Department of Health Services, acute malnutrition has been identified in 109 local levels across Madhes Province, of which 18 are in Sarlahi District.

Haripur Municipality has recorded the highest rate of severe acute malnutrition in Madhes Province, with 8.8 per cent of children affected.

According to Nawal Kishore Rai, Chief of the Health Section at Haripur Municipality, a recent nutrition assessment found that children from Muslim and Dalit settlements were the most affected.

“The problem is particularly severe in the Muslim settlements of Majurwa, Farhadwa and Laxmipur, as well as the Dalit settlement in Ward No. 2 of Haripur,” he said.

Rai said awareness programmes on nutrition have been launched with the participation of the Family Welfare Division and representatives of various development partners after the municipality recorded acute malnutrition.

The municipality claims that the nutritional condition of affected children has gradually improved through the distribution of nutritious food in line with government standards and awareness campaigns.

After Haripur, Bishnu Rural Municipality and Ramnagar Rural Municipality have the second-highest prevalence, with 5.5 per cent of children suffering from severe acute malnutrition.

Similarly, Kabilasi Municipality has recorded 5.4 per cent, Chakraghatta Rural Municipality recorded 5.3 per cent, Ishwarpur Municipality 5.1 per cent , Basbariya Rural Municipality 4.9 per cent, Kaudena Rural Municipality 4.6 per cent, Barahathawa Municipality 4.2 per cent, Godaita Municipality 4.0 per cent , Parsa Rural Municipality, Dhankaul Rural Municipality and Bagmati Municipality 3.6 per cent each, Malangawa Municipality 3.3 per cent, Brahmapuri Rural Municipality, Chandranagar Rural Municipality and Balara Municipality 2.6 per cent each and 2.5 per cent in Haripurwa Municipality. 

The nutritional status of children in Lalbandi and Hariwan municipalities was found to be comparatively better.

Roshan Chaudhary, Health Officer at Lalbandi Municipality, said that although some children in the municipality were malnourished, the situation was not as serious as in many other local levels.

He attributed the comparatively better nutritional status to higher educational attainment, improved access to healthcare services and better nutrition programmes than in the southern belt of the district.

Health workers say malnutrition is more prevalent among Muslim and Dalit communities across Madhesh Province.

Rituraj Rishi (Musahar), a community leader from the Musahar settlement in Kamad, Chandranagar Rural Municipality-6, and president of the National Musahar Association, said poverty forces many children in Dalit settlements to go to bed hungry. 

“In many families, there is only one earning member who has to support six or seven children,” he said.

According to Sushil Kumar Jha, Public Health Officer at the Sarlahi Health Office, child malnutrition is primarily caused by inadequate and nutritious food, unsafe drinking water, poor sanitation, and inappropriate infant and young child feeding practices.

Nutrition focal person Jha said many families either do not know how to provide a balanced diet, including cereals, pulses, green vegetables, meat, fish, milk and yoghurt, or cannot afford to buy such food.

To reduce child malnutrition, the government has been providing Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF) free of charge through health facilities.

Following the identification of widespread malnutrition, including severe wasting and stunting, among children in 18 local levels of Sarlahi, the District Health Office said it has been conducting nutrition awareness programmes in coordination with local governments and non-governmental organisations.