About 43% <strong>of</strong> <strong>children</strong> reportedly had one or more morbidities such as fever, ARIand diarrhoea dur<strong>in</strong>g the preced<strong>in</strong>g fortnight. The prevalence was relatively higheramong 6-11 months <strong>children</strong>, which tended to decrease with <strong>in</strong>crease <strong>in</strong> age. About71% <strong>of</strong> the mothers reported that they generally consult private practitioner, while 26%went to PHC, to seek treatment for their sick <strong>children</strong>.The overall prevalence <strong>of</strong> <strong>under</strong>nutrition (
1. INTRODUCTIONIndia, <strong>in</strong> the past few decades, has witnessed rapid progress <strong>in</strong> terms <strong>of</strong><strong>in</strong>dustrialization and agricultural production. Yet malnutrition, especially<strong>under</strong>nutrition cont<strong>in</strong>ues to be a major problem <strong>of</strong> public health significance <strong>in</strong> thecountry. It is a major contributor to high rates <strong>of</strong> childhood mortality, maternalmortality and morbidities <strong>in</strong> the community 1 . Though, poverty is a major <strong>under</strong>ly<strong>in</strong>gcause, scores <strong>of</strong> other factors such as socio-demographic, socio-cultural and lifestylepractices contribute significantly to the problem <strong>of</strong> malnutrition.Prevalence <strong>of</strong> low birth weight, ma<strong>in</strong>ly due to <strong>in</strong>trauter<strong>in</strong>e growth retardationcont<strong>in</strong>ues to be high, which is attributable to maternal <strong>under</strong>nutrition. This is furtheraggravated by <strong>in</strong>appropriate <strong>in</strong>fant and young child feed<strong>in</strong>g practices, such asdiscard<strong>in</strong>g <strong>of</strong> colostrum, delayed <strong>in</strong>itiation <strong>of</strong> breast feed<strong>in</strong>g, early or delayed<strong>in</strong>itiation <strong>of</strong> complementary feed<strong>in</strong>g, and sub-optimal complementary feed<strong>in</strong>gpractices <strong>in</strong> terms <strong>of</strong> type <strong>of</strong> feed, quantity, and frequency.It has been found that non-exclusive breast feed<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> the first six months <strong>of</strong>life results <strong>in</strong> 1.4 million deaths and 10% <strong>of</strong> the disease burden among <strong>in</strong>fants andyoung <strong>children</strong> every <strong>year</strong> <strong>in</strong> the develop<strong>in</strong>g countries 2 . It is also estimated that about10-15% <strong>of</strong> <strong>under</strong> <strong>five</strong> <strong>year</strong> deaths <strong>in</strong> resource poor countries could be prevented byachiev<strong>in</strong>g 90% <strong>of</strong> exclusive breast feed<strong>in</strong>g alone 3 and 22% <strong>of</strong> neonatal deaths couldbe prevented if breast feed<strong>in</strong>g is <strong>in</strong>itiated with<strong>in</strong> the first hour <strong>of</strong> birth 4 .About 21% <strong>of</strong> global deaths and DALYs (Disability Adjusted Life Years) <strong>in</strong><strong>children</strong> younger than 5 <strong>year</strong>s are attributed to stunt<strong>in</strong>g, severe wast<strong>in</strong>g, and<strong>in</strong>trauter<strong>in</strong>e growth retardation. Long term consequences <strong>of</strong> <strong>under</strong>nutrition dur<strong>in</strong>g theearly stages <strong>of</strong> child growth and development <strong>in</strong>clude likelihood <strong>of</strong> short stature <strong>in</strong>adult life, low educational achievements, giv<strong>in</strong>g birth to smaller <strong>children</strong>, lowereconomic status and reduced physical work capacity and productivity <strong>in</strong> adulthood 5 .Further, the country is pass<strong>in</strong>g through a phase <strong>of</strong> rapid socio-economictransition lead<strong>in</strong>g to over nutrition <strong>in</strong> certa<strong>in</strong> segments <strong>of</strong> the population, especially <strong>in</strong>the urban communities. Chang<strong>in</strong>g lifestyles and dietary habits are contribut<strong>in</strong>g to<strong>in</strong>crease <strong>in</strong> the prevalence <strong>of</strong> overweight/obesity among <strong>children</strong> and young adultsexpos<strong>in</strong>g them to the risk <strong>of</strong> chronic degenerative disorders such as hypertension,Type 2 diabetes, coronary artery disease, stroke, cancers etc <strong>in</strong> the later part <strong>of</strong> life.More over <strong>under</strong>nutrition dur<strong>in</strong>g early childhood can lead to overweight/obesity <strong>in</strong>adulthood, a risk factor for diet related chronic diseases 6 .The major nutritional problems <strong>of</strong> public health significance <strong>in</strong> the country are,prote<strong>in</strong> energy malnutrition (PEM), vitam<strong>in</strong> A deficiency (VAD), iron deficiencyanaemia (IDA), and iod<strong>in</strong>e deficiency disorders (IDD). Preschool <strong>children</strong>, adolescentgirls, women <strong>of</strong> reproductive age group, elderly, those belong<strong>in</strong>g to socioeconomicallybackward groups such as scheduled caste and schedule tribe<strong>Nutritional</strong> <strong>Status</strong> <strong>of</strong>
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