Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Faculty of Development Studies, Lilongwe, Malawi.
Witwatersrand University, School of Public Health, Education Campus, Park Town, Johannesburg.
PLoS One. 2020 Sep 14;15(9):e0237139. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0237139. eCollection 2020.
Despite remarkable progress in reducing under five mortalities in Malawi, a relative proportion of under nutrition among children still exist.
The study examines dietary consumption factors and their effect on under nutrition outcomes among children under five years' children in rural Malawi.
Using the 2015-16 Malawi Demographic and Health Survey, in which 4,150 children were reported of under nutrition statuses, the study used nested logistic regression models to estimate factors influencing the prevalence of under nutrition among children.
Based on the results, exclusive breast feeding among children under five years, after controlling for parental socioeconomic factors, was found to reduce the levels of wasting (ODDS RATIO [OR] = 0.763; p < 0.05), underweight (OR = 0.548; p < 0.001) and stunting (OR = 0.709; p < 0.005). Furthermore, it was found that despite the perceived adequacy among women in accessing fruits and vegetables, carbohydrates and micro-nutrient supplements, their children under five years, still experiences public health challenges and suffers from wasting, underweight and stunting.
There is need to implement extensive pro-rural under five nutritional and health educational advocacy using community-based approaches, targeting parents, emphasizing the significance of exclusive breast feeding and consistencies in giving dietary foods, if and only if the persistent public health challenges due to under nutrition among children under five years, is to be sustainably dealt with, in Malawi.
尽管马拉维在降低五岁以下儿童死亡率方面取得了显著进展，但儿童中仍存在相对比例的营养不足问题。
本研究考察了饮食消费因素及其对马拉维农村地区五岁以下儿童营养不足状况的影响。
本研究使用了 2015-16 年马拉维人口与健康调查的数据，该调查报告了 4150 名儿童存在营养不足状况。研究采用嵌套逻辑回归模型来估计影响儿童营养不足患病率的因素。
基于研究结果，在控制了父母的社会经济因素后，五岁以下儿童的纯母乳喂养被发现可以降低消瘦（优势比 [OR] = 0.763；p < 0.05）、体重不足（OR = 0.548；p < 0.001）和发育迟缓（OR = 0.709；p < 0.005）的发生率。此外，尽管女性普遍认为自己能够获得足够的水果、蔬菜、碳水化合物和微量营养素补充剂，但她们五岁以下的孩子仍然面临公共卫生挑战，患有消瘦、体重不足和发育迟缓。
需要在农村地区实施广泛的五岁以下儿童营养和健康教育宣传活动，采用以社区为基础的方法，针对父母，强调纯母乳喂养的重要性和饮食一致性，如果要可持续地应对马拉维五岁以下儿童持续存在的营养不足问题，这是必要的。
