Rich or poor, city kids malnourished

Study Says Children In Slum & Non-Slum Areas Fare Similarly

    Poor nutrition is taking a toll on Mumbai’s health. The city’s women and children, whether living in slums or elsewhere have failed in their report card for physical growth only because of low nutrition consequent to lack of a healthy diet. Their counterparts in other urban parts of Maharashtra have fared better in the health index due to proper nutrition and are less malnourished than those in Mumbai.
    Around 45.4% of children below the age of five were found stunted (imbalance between height and age due to low nutrition diet for a long period) and 15.9% were severely stunted among the total children observed in Mumbai in slums and organised housing colonies of the city. Similarly 16.2% were wasted (imbalance between weight and height due to low nutrition for relatively shorter period), with 3.5% of them severely wasted. Around 32.6 % were found to be underweight (a total mismatch between weight and age due to acute as well as chronic malnutrition) with 10 % of them severely underweight. Similarly around 50-60 % women in Mumbai were anaemic.
    The Human Development Report Mumbai 2009 prepared by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) with the help of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and other state agencies has come up with this fact, analyzing data the BMC collected in 2006-07 for the national family health survey. The report, that indicates a scary picture of the average Mumbaikar’s nutrition, stated that around 45-55% children didn’t have proper diet rich with proteins and vitamins.
    Similarly around 33% boys and girls suffer from grade-one (first stage) malnutrition and 16 to 17% suffer from grade-two (more severe) malnutrition. The nutritional status was examined across the city under the integrated child development scheme. Similarly around 60% of children up to three years and pregnant women were found anaemic as compared to 11% men. Around 45% children were ‘low weight’ at birth. “Adequate nutrition is critical for health and productivity of people. Malnutrition can result in greater susceptibility to infections, risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes for women and growth retardation among children,” stated the survey.
    The report also cites the study by Neeraj Hatekar and Sanjay Rode, a student of Mumbai University. They studied 1006 households in Matunga (E&W), Dadar, Mahim, Bandra, Mankhurd, Kurla, Vikhroli (E&W) and Ghatkopar and found malnutrition, stunting and related deaths of children in these areas was similar to what prevailed in the tribal village of Jawhar in Thane, infamous for malnutrition deaths.
    The issue of malnutrition in the city came to fore after several cases surfaced at Aarey Milk colony in July 2007, following which the Bombay High Court hauled up the state government.
    The 2007 Unicef report held the erosion of the public distribution system and malpractices in the state-supported mid-day meal scheme responsible for nutritional deficiency among children and women.
    The report also cites the national family health survey by the International Institute of Population Atudies (IIPS) which reveals that anaemia among women in Mumbai is up to 60%. The reason for such a high figure it says, is the sky-rocketing prices of nutrientrich foods like pulses, cereals and vegetables and non-availability of safe drinking water.
    Working women also had to nurse their families, especially sick members, or spend long hours in queues for a bucket of water, all of which had negative implications on their health. It was also found that only 3% of the 98% pregnant women were being served with food while most of them were cooking and nursing their families on their own. The report reveals that this resulted in the maternal mortality rate increase from 0.17% in 2002 to 0.63% in 2006.