Nutritional status of rural school children in central zone of Punjab

Nahar, Savita; Grover, Kiran; Chawla, Paramjit

Nutritional status of rural school children in central zone of Punjab

2009

Nahar, Savita | Grover, Kiran | Chawla, Paramjit

A sample of 120 school children in the age group of 7-9 year was selected from rural areas of two districts namely Jalandhar and Kapurthala of central zone of Punjab. General information, food and nutrient intake and anthropometric measurements of rural school children were recorded to assess their nutritional status. The data on dietary adequacy revealed lower intake of cereals, pulses, milk and milk products and green leafy vegetables. The per cent adequacy of energy and protein intake was found to be nearly half (50 and 54%) of the Recommended Dietary Allowances. The intake of vitamins and minerals - _q-carotene, thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B12, vitamin C, calcium and iron was also lower. The mean height of children was comparable with national and international standards of Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and National Centre for Health and Statistics (NCHS), USA. However, the mean weight was lower than these standards. Twenty two per cent of rural school children were underweight. The percentage of underweight girls (24.6) was found to be higher than boys (17.7). Low purchasing power and ignorance were mainly responsible for dietary inadequacy. Hence, empowering the mothers in terms of nutritional knowledge and skill can go a long way to improve the nutritional status of the children.

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