Addressing undernourishment issue

Bangladesh has made rapid progress in health and nutrition over the past decade. There has been a significant decline in stunting among under-five children, as well as a rise in life expectancy. However, the country is yet to achieve nutrition security for its entire population. One in every four children in Bangladesh under the age of five was found to be stunted, due mainly to poor diet and malnutrition, according to the results of a national health survey released recently. Both rural and urban poor communities have cut their protein intake due to the ongoing economic crisis and food inflation. Most of them can hardly manage basic food costs for their families, which is threatening the overall nutrition status of the country.

The rise in child mortality, as reported by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics recently, is also a consequence of undernourishment of people at the low-income strata of society. When people stand in a queue for hours together to purchase government-subsidised commodities from TCB (Trading Corporation of Bangladesh) trucks, their desperation can easily be realised. But those commodities alone are not enough for leading a healthy life. Also, those are not enough for their need all the time. These people cannot afford nutritious food items from the open market. This explains the rising undernourishment of poor and marginal people whose number is also on the rise.

One of the major causes of undernourishment is inadequate dietary intake, which means both in quantity and quality. Disadvantaged people have been hit hard by the ongoing economic crises and unusual food inflation, limiting their ability to afford foods from animal sources, which contain vitamin A, B12, riboflavin, calcium, iron and zinc as well as higher amounts of protein and fat compared to plant food sources. The government should address this problem as soon as possible.

Afroza Sheikh,

Dania, Dhaka,

ilcbd2008@gmail.com