Economic evidence increases the risk of malnutrition of childhood

Even slight decreases in national income can significantly increase the risk of various forms of malnutrition of childhood- not only malnutrition, but also with overweight and obesity, shows a study conducted by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (Isglobal), an institution supported by the “La Caixa” Foundation. The study, published, identifies pregnancy and the first 1000 days of life as particularly sensitive periods in which targeted interventions can have a great impact.

One for four children around the world live in heavy food poverty. And many countries with low and medium income (LMIC) are currently in the face of the growing double weight of malnutrition, characterized by the coexistence of malnutrition next to overweight or obesity.

Given the many crises that the world faces, we must better understand how economic shocks and poverty affect children’s malnutrition to better design interventions and prevention strategies. ”

Davide Rasella, Icrea researcher at ISGLOBAL and study coordinator

A close look at economic slowdowns and malnutrition of children

The authors analyzed data from over 1.6 million children in 68 LMIC to understand how early exposure to economic slowdown affects nutrition. They combined 230 domestic household research with economic data from the world database of unevenness. This allowed them to follow every child from birth to the first 1000 days of life and identify economic slowdowns in various income groups in every country.

“Our analysis is the first that takes into account economic heterogeneity in every country and look at critical time windows and various forms of malnutrition, including overweight and obesity,” says Natanael Silva, researcher Predockoral at ISGLOBAL and the first author of the study.

The first 1000 days of life

Scientists used the height, weight and age of the child to identify various forms of malnutrition, sometimes combined with the same child: inhibition (too short for their age), wasting (too thin at their height), overweight and obesity.

The analysis revealed the following patterns:

The fall of income during the year was born a child who was born a risk of inhibition, especially when the decline in the economy was serious. Income shocks at the time of birth were also associated with an increased risk of both wasting and twisted at the same child, which suggests that economic instability during pregnancy can have a deep impact on early life.

Income shocks in the year of the interview were mainly associated with the waste of children, defined as rapid weight loss, reflecting short -term changes in quality or the amount of diet, as well as the disease.

Children who experienced economic shock during the first 1000 days of life (critical period for growth) had a much greater risk that they had both inhibition and overweight – a 30% increase in risk. Even the mild deterioration of the economic situation was associated with the increased risk of this double weight of malnutrition.

Finally, the effects differed depending on the level of income: income shocks usually had a greater negative impact on malnutrition among the poorest, while richer households also noted an increase in obesity and overweight.

“Our findings show that income shocks can significantly increase the risk of various forms of malnutrition of childhood and help identify critical windows for action,” says Rasella. The authors call on decision -makers to develop targeted interventions to protect the nutrition of mothers and children, especially in times of economic difficulties.