October - December 2012 - National Institute of Rural Development

532 Mohammed Kasim C.weight and stunting. Children who are morethan two standard deviations below thereference median of the indices areconsidered to be under-nourished, andchildren who fall more than three standarddeviations below the reference median areconsidered as severely under-nourished. Theprevalence of under-nutrition in the State hasbeen declining in terms of stunting andunder-weight. However, the proportion ofchildren wasted increased from 1998-99 to2005- 06. In 1992-93 11.6 per cent ofchildren under age five were wasted. Itmeans that they are too thin relative to theirheight. Among them, the proportion ofchildren who are severely under-nourishedaccounted for 1.3 per cent.Table 11 : Nutritional Status of Children in KeralaWeight for Height Weight for Age Height for Age(Wasting) (Under-weight) (Stunting)Percentage Percentage Percentage Percentage Percentage PercentageBelow -3SD Below -2SD Below -3SD Below -2SD Below -3SD Below -2SD1992-93 1.3 11.6 6.1 28.5 9 27.41998-99 0.7 11.1 4.7 26.9 7.3 21.92005-06 4.1 15.9 4.7 22.9 6.5 24.5Source : National Family Health Surveys, International Institute of Population Science - Mumbai,(NFHS-2&3).The proportion of children wasteddeclined to 11.1 per cent in 1998-99.Similarly, the proportion of severely undernourishedchildren declined to 0.7 per cent.But in 2005-06 this value increased.Proportion of children wasted increased to15.9 per cent. The proportion of children whosuffer from severe under-nutrition increasedto 4.1 per cent. This is mainly because ofinadequate nutrient intake and seasonalvariation in food consumption. On the otherhand, the proportion of children falling underother two categories has been declining. Theproportion of under-weight children declinedfrom 28.5 per cent in 1992-93 to 26.9 percent in 1998-99 and to 22.9 per cent in 2005-06. Similarly, proportion of severely underweightchildren had declined from 6.1 to 4.7per cent during 1992-93 to 1998-99. In 2005-06 only 4.7 per cent children were severelyunder-weight. The proportion of children whoare stunted declined from 27.8 per cent in1992-93 to 24.5 per cent in 2005-06. Severelystunted children also registered a declinefrom 9 per cent in 1992-93 to 6.5 per cent in2005-06. Therefore, there has beenconsiderable decline in incidence of undernutritionin the State.The proportion of under-nourishedchildren is higher in case of stunting as westated earlier. It indicates that height ofchildren is lower relative to their age inKerala. It is a consequence of inadequate foodintake. There has been urban-rural disparityin the nutritional status among children. Theproportion of rural children wasted accountedfor 10.9 per cent in 1998-99. This value ofurban children was 11.2 per cent in 1998-99.The proportion of under-weight rural childrenaccounted for 28.0 per cent in 1998-99.However, in urban area in 1998-99 only 22.4Journal of Rural Development, Vol. 31, No. 4, October - December : 2012