Factors associated with underweight and stunting among children in rural Terai of eastern Nepal.

Malnutrition continues to affect a large proportion of children in the developing world. The authors undertook this study to identify biologic, socioeconomic, and health care factors associated with underweight and stunting in young children in an the eastern Tarai (plains) district of Nepal. Data were collected via questionnaires from mothers of 443 children aged 6 to 36 months in Sunsari district.

Children aged 6 to 60 months in Nepal may require a vitamin A supplement regardless of dietary intake from plant an animal food sources.

The purpose of this survey was to explore the relationship between the prevalence of the health indicators of malnutrition, diarrhea, and acute respiratory infection and the consumption of vitamin A-rich food and the supplementation status of three groups of children in Nepal (supplemented, supplemented only once, and never supplemented). A trained female community health worker interviewed mothers about vitamin A-rich food feeding practices to children aged 6 to 60 months using a standardized questionnaire and then estimated the nutritional status of the children using mid-upper-arm circumference measurements and recording the incidence of diarrhea and acute respiratory infection from mothers' interviews. Regardless of the amount of vitamin A-rich foods consumed, children who were regularly supplemented with high doses of vitamin A were protected against malnutrition, diarrhea, and acute respiratory infection at a higher rate than children who were supplemented only once or were never supplemented.

Vitamin A supplementation and health outcomes for children in Nepal.

Purpose: To compare vitamin A supplementation status of children age 6-60 months to the prevalence of vitamin A deficiency disease, malnutrition, diarrhea, and acute respiratory infection.

Methods: The nutritional status of children was estimated using mid-upper-arm circumference measurements. A trained ophthalmology assistant assessed for clinical signs of vitamin A deficiency disease.