LARKANA: Stating that every second child in Sindh is stunted, health experts have called for coordinated efforts to address the issue of malnutrition’s impact on the generations to come.
Drawn from different institutions, they were sharing their views at the ‘National Conference Tackling Malnutrition in Sindh’ held under the auspices of Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Medical University (SMBBMU) under the sponsorship of the Strengthening Participatory Organisation (SPO) at Chandka Medical College (CMC) the other day. The event was inaugurated by SMBBMU Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Nusrat Shah inaugurated along with CMC Principal Prof D Zamir Soomro.
The speakers talked on pathways to awareness actions and innovations through academic institutions and civil society organisations in five sessions.
Prof Saifiullah Jamro called malnutrition the most common, most neglected and mother of diseases. Lower resistance to diseases, increased risk of mortality and reduced physical activity were the risk with malnourished person, he added.
He said that, amidst imbalance intake, the stunted mother would give birth to stunted child. According to him, among children of under five the death ratio is 55 per cent. He said the malnutrition runs from generation to generation, affecting child physically and mentally.
He went on saying that an undernourished or malnourished child would have low intelligence quotient (IQ), adding that every four out of 10 children were stunted and claimed that from 2018 to date there was no change.
He said that globally one in nine people was hungry or malnourished and suspected that either we could achieve sustainable development goal of ‘Zero Hunger’. He said in 2010 floods, the malnourishment had touched ‘disaster’ line. He suggested that emergency should be declared in Sindh regarding the malnourished children. “We are malnourished nation from birth,” he said.
Dr Muhammed Usman Khan, campus director of Dr Ziauddin University Hospital, Sukkur, said the basic needs and human rights were intertwined, adding that parents were trapped in a vicious circle as there was a lack of awareness regarding the malnutrition.
He talked about the programmes the university had offered regarding the nutrition. Dr Yasim Shaikh, deputy director health services, Larkana, said mother’s health was vital which needed to be addressed first through the element of awareness and proper nutrition.
Dr Naveed Bhutto of the WHO talked about the triple burden. He said that from 10 to 19 years of age, women suffered from iron deficiency. He said every second child in Sindh was stunted and 45 per cent of the minors had stunted growth and called it ‘alarming situation’.
He stressed on adopting integrated approach system to address the issue.
Dr Sahib Jan Baddar, programme director of the National Health Support Programme, spoke on zoom and shared her views regarding the subject.
Others who also spoke on the occasion included Associate Prof Abdul Shakoor, Assistant Prof Anwar Phulpoto from Shah Abdul Latif University, Nadeem Yousif and Dr Mir Hassan Khoso from the Office of Research Innovation and Commercialisation (ORIC) of the SMBBMU.
Published in Dawn, June 23rd, 2025
