A Study of prevalence of malnutrition in government School children in the field area of Azad nagar Bangalore, India By Dr Izharul Hasan MD Unani in Preventive and Social Medicine

Malnutrition is a problem at varying proportions in developing countries, and anthropometry is a simple tool to assess its magnitude in children. This study was aimed at identifying the prevalence of malnutrition among 500 children of govt schols of Azad Nagar, bangalore south Asia. The value of using various field based formulae and of various anthropometric indicators used for classification of malnutrition was also studied. The study was focused on children aged 8-14 years studying in class 1 to 8 in govt schools. Anthropometric data and eating practices of children were collected with the help of a pretested questionnaire and food intake diary. Selected anthropometric measurements were taken using standard techniques. Their Body Mass Index (B.M.I) for age was calculated and compared with WHO (2007) standards. Compared to WHO standards, mean BMI of school children in Azad Nagar and its surrounding area was inferior at all ages. The prevalence of malnutrition was 68%, males recorded a relatively high high rate of malnutrition 57.94% (197) than females 42.06% (143). The study reveals that the average of govt school children in Azad Nagar are underweighted. Poor nutrition of children do not only affects the cognitive development of children but also likely to reduce the work capacity in future.