Erschienen in:
07.08.2023 | Editorial Commentary
‘Hidden Hunger’ in the Severely Malnourished
verfasst von:
Shivani Randev
Erschienen in:
Indian Journal of Pediatrics
|
Ausgabe 10/2023
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Excerpt
India has shown remarkable progress in child health, as is evident by the impressive decline in its under-five mortality rate from 51.7 in 2005-6 (NHFS-3) to 41.9 in 2019-21 (NFHS-5). However, the prevalence of severe acute malnutrition has shown a paradoxical increase from 6.4 to 7.7% in the same period [
1,
2]. These children suffer from a deficiency of not only proteins and calories, but also micronutrients. Whereas consequences of macronutrient deficiency are visibly apparent, those of micronutrients are often subtle, justifying the title ‘hidden hunger’ [
3]. The consequences of uncorrected micronutrient deficiency can be devastating, in terms of weakened immune system, mental impairment, and several other less apparent deficits which may prevent children from reaching their full intellectual potential. …