According to a UNICEF research, the number of pregnant and lactating women suffering from acute malnutrition has increased by 25 percent in 12 African and Asian nations since 2020. In a report released on Tuesday, UNICEF stated that the number of malnourished mothers has increased from 5.5 million to 6.9 million over the past two years in countries hardest hit by a global nutrition crisis, which has been exacerbated by the conflict in Ukraine, drought, conflict, and instability.
More than one billion teenage girls and women in the 12 nations of Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Chad, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan, and Yemen are undernourished, with disastrous effects for their lives and well-being, according to a report. “The worldwide food crisis forces millions of women and their children into starvation and severe malnutrition,” said Catherine Russell, the executive director of UNICEF. According to the paper, poor nutrition in pregnant and lactating mothers can result in a variety of health problems for their children, including preterm deliveries, low birth weight, stunting, and wasting. Children born to malnourished moms are also more likely to develop chronic health issues and have a greater chance of death, according to the report.
“Rally the political will”
According to the paper, fifty percent of stunting in children under the age of two occurs during pregnancy and the first six months of life, “the 500-day period when a kid is completely dependent on mother nutrition.” Around 51 million children under the age of two are stunted owing to hunger worldwide. Russell noted, “To avoid malnutrition in children, we must also treat malnutrition in teenage girls and women.” Several crises, including violence, displacement, and the severe consequences of climate change, have disrupted livelihoods and access to key services in the nations included in the study. “We know what it takes to provide nutrition support and services to the most in need moms and children. We just require the mobilization of political will and resources to take action. “There is no time to lose,” Russell stated.
