World Population Day – Addressing Issue of Malnutrition

World Population Day is an annual event, celebrated on July 11 every year, which seeks to raise awareness of global population issues. The event was established by the Governing Council of the United Nations Development Programme in 1989.

India is the second-most populous country in the world with an estimated population of around 1.37 billion by 2019. But with the ever-increasing population of our country Malnutrition is also very common among children.

Malnutrition refers to when a person’s diet does not provide enough nutrients or the right balance of nutrients for optimal health. Despite numerous efforts to tackle this problem, India’s child malnutrition rates are still one of the most alarming in the world.

Causes of Malnutrition in India:

• Mother’s health status: It is believed that from the day a woman conceives till the time she gives birth to the child is very crucial for the overall development of the body. Although many women in this phase are either anemic or malnourished and this eventually gives birth to malnourished children.
• Lack of good food: Many children especially those living in the slum areas lack the basic necessity of life that is good food to eat. As a result, children are likely to be stunted and underweight. Also, their body mass index (BMI) is below the normal range.
• Lack of awareness of nutrition: The major cause of malnutrition is also the inability of people to judiciously choose the best nutritious food.
• Failure of government intervention: There are many programmes started by the Government of India to abolish malnutrition in India by distributing healthy food items and creating awareness among weaker sections of the society by arranging workshops. But all this goes in vain as many times essential items do not reach these people due to poor accessibility in those areas.
• Sanitation: Poor sanitation facilities and the unavailability of clean drinking water is another major reason for malnutrition in India despite the food being available to them.

Ways to Eradicate Malnutrition in India:

• More awareness has to be created among mothers who are going to give birth or breastfeeding their child. The importance of a nutrition-rich diet has to be told for better cognitive development of the mother as well as the child.
• Strict policies have to be introduced by the government to give a greater insight into the need for diversified foods.
• There must be easy access to healthcare facilities for the people who couldn’t even afford necessities like nutritional supplements or clean drinking water.
• Social inequality among weaker and upper sections of the society also needs not be overlooked to eradicate malnutrition.

Over to you:

As the world’s population is increasing at an alarming rate, we need to focus more on the increasing malnutrition in India. The education on the importance of a nutritious and well-balanced diet has to be given to people as early as possible for a malnutrition-free India and a better tomorrow.