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A new Unicef report says millions of
children and women in Bangladesh
are suffering from more than one
form of malnutrition. The severity
of the problem can be gauged from
the fact of its chronic nature whereby undernourishment passes
from one generation to the next. Dhaka: Bangladesh has one of the highest rates of child and maternal
malnutrition in the world, say health
experts. According to the State of the World's
Children (SOWC) Report 2008, issued
by the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF),
eight million or 48% of all children
under-five are underweight. Malnutrition.jpg Malnutrition among children and women in Bangladesh is rampant/ Photo credit: IRIN Millions of children and women suffer
from one or more forms of
malnutrition, including low birth
weight, stunting, underweight,
Vitamin A deficiency, iodine deficiency
disorders and anaemia. Malnutrition passes from one
generation to the next because
malnourished mothers give birth to
malnourished infants. If they are girls,
these children often become
malnourished mothers themselves, and the vicious cycle continues. Malnutrition contributes to about half
of all child deaths, often by weakening
immunity. Survivors are left vulnerable
to illness, stunted or intellectually
impaired. Newborn deaths make up nearly half
of all under-five deaths (57%) and
71% of infant mortality. One neonate
dies in Bangladesh every three to four
minutes; 120,000 neonates die every
year, according to UNICEF. MDGs on track However, Bangladesh is on track to
achieve several Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs), including
reducing by 2015 the under-five
mortality rate to 50 per 1,000 live
births from 65, the UNICEF report claims. Matching achievements of only five
other countries, Bangladesh has
halved the child mortality rate since
1990. "Bangladesh has made good progress
in the past decade towards achieving
MDG-1, the eradication of extreme
poverty and hunger," the UNICEF
report said. Between 1996 and 2005, the
prevalence of underweight children
fell from 56% to 45%, while stunting
fell from 55% to 40%. "If we can keep the price of essentials
within the reach of the common
people, we will be able to achieve the
MDG goals of child survival and
maternal health," said AKM Zafarullah,
secretary of the Ministry of Health. "Silent emergency" Abdul Faiz, director-general of health
services, is confident Bangladesh will
achieve the MDG-5 of reducing
maternal mortality to 147 per 100,000
live births by 2015 from the present
official rate of 320 per 100,000. According to Christine Jaulmes, chief
of communication and information of
UNICEF Bangladesh, achieving the MDG
would mean about 30 million children
and two million mothers would be
saved by 2015. "But, as urban slums, the Chittagong
Hill Tracts, coastal regions and other
ecologically vulnerable areas are
falling behind, their distinct problems
need to be addressed carefully," Faiz
added. Natural disasters compound
malnutrition, which is often
considered a "silent emergency", even
in normal times, stated UNICEF. Every
five to 10 years there is a major
disaster that causes widespread damage, wiping out crops, houses,
safe water sources, livelihoods and
wreaking havoc on nutrition. "Although the situation is improving in
some sectors, the overall situation is
quite serious and therefore not
acceptable," said Mohammad Mohsin
Ali, a UNICEF nutrition specialist. "The protein energy deficiency (PED)
which is expressed through
underweight, stunting and retarded
physical growth of children, is still
unacceptably high," he added. "Iodine and vitamin-A
supplementation are showing very
positive outcomes, but iron deficiency
anaemia among children and women
is very high. Nearly 85% of children
under one year of age and almost 50% of pregnant women suffer from
iron deficiency anaemia. This needs to
be addressed." "A national strategy for anaemia
prevention and control has also been
put in place. Both strategies aim at
preventing and controlling the issues
of malnutrition of children and
mothers," Mohsin said.
children and women in Bangladesh
are suffering from more than one
form of malnutrition. The severity
of the problem can be gauged from
the fact of its chronic nature whereby undernourishment passes
from one generation to the next. Dhaka: Bangladesh has one of the highest rates of child and maternal
malnutrition in the world, say health
experts. According to the State of the World's
Children (SOWC) Report 2008, issued
by the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF),
eight million or 48% of all children
under-five are underweight. Malnutrition.jpg Malnutrition among children and women in Bangladesh is rampant/ Photo credit: IRIN Millions of children and women suffer
from one or more forms of
malnutrition, including low birth
weight, stunting, underweight,
Vitamin A deficiency, iodine deficiency
disorders and anaemia. Malnutrition passes from one
generation to the next because
malnourished mothers give birth to
malnourished infants. If they are girls,
these children often become
malnourished mothers themselves, and the vicious cycle continues. Malnutrition contributes to about half
of all child deaths, often by weakening
immunity. Survivors are left vulnerable
to illness, stunted or intellectually
impaired. Newborn deaths make up nearly half
of all under-five deaths (57%) and
71% of infant mortality. One neonate
dies in Bangladesh every three to four
minutes; 120,000 neonates die every
year, according to UNICEF. MDGs on track However, Bangladesh is on track to
achieve several Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs), including
reducing by 2015 the under-five
mortality rate to 50 per 1,000 live
births from 65, the UNICEF report claims. Matching achievements of only five
other countries, Bangladesh has
halved the child mortality rate since
1990. "Bangladesh has made good progress
in the past decade towards achieving
MDG-1, the eradication of extreme
poverty and hunger," the UNICEF
report said. Between 1996 and 2005, the
prevalence of underweight children
fell from 56% to 45%, while stunting
fell from 55% to 40%. "If we can keep the price of essentials
within the reach of the common
people, we will be able to achieve the
MDG goals of child survival and
maternal health," said AKM Zafarullah,
secretary of the Ministry of Health. "Silent emergency" Abdul Faiz, director-general of health
services, is confident Bangladesh will
achieve the MDG-5 of reducing
maternal mortality to 147 per 100,000
live births by 2015 from the present
official rate of 320 per 100,000. According to Christine Jaulmes, chief
of communication and information of
UNICEF Bangladesh, achieving the MDG
would mean about 30 million children
and two million mothers would be
saved by 2015. "But, as urban slums, the Chittagong
Hill Tracts, coastal regions and other
ecologically vulnerable areas are
falling behind, their distinct problems
need to be addressed carefully," Faiz
added. Natural disasters compound
malnutrition, which is often
considered a "silent emergency", even
in normal times, stated UNICEF. Every
five to 10 years there is a major
disaster that causes widespread damage, wiping out crops, houses,
safe water sources, livelihoods and
wreaking havoc on nutrition. "Although the situation is improving in
some sectors, the overall situation is
quite serious and therefore not
acceptable," said Mohammad Mohsin
Ali, a UNICEF nutrition specialist. "The protein energy deficiency (PED)
which is expressed through
underweight, stunting and retarded
physical growth of children, is still
unacceptably high," he added. "Iodine and vitamin-A
supplementation are showing very
positive outcomes, but iron deficiency
anaemia among children and women
is very high. Nearly 85% of children
under one year of age and almost 50% of pregnant women suffer from
iron deficiency anaemia. This needs to
be addressed." "A national strategy for anaemia
prevention and control has also been
put in place. Both strategies aim at
preventing and controlling the issues
of malnutrition of children and
mothers," Mohsin said.
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