By; JACOB ONJEWU DICKSON
A total of 11,324 cases of malnutrition were cured in Kaduna State out of 17,989 cases recorded in Kaduna State in the year 2017.
This was disclosed by the Nutrition Officer, State Primary Health Care Development Agency (SPHCDA), Hajiya Hauwa Usman, while presenting a paper titled: ‘An Overview of Nutrition Situation of Women and Children; National and Kaduna State at a two-day workshop organised for Kaduna based journalists in Zaria on Friday.
According to her 13,382 of the cases were discharged, while 169 deaths were recorded.
She explained that according to Community Management if Acute Malnutrition (CMAM) statistics for 2017, a total of 169 deaths recorded.
“Total non recovered/rate is 374, total tested for HIV 384 (3 positive),” she said.
According to her, malnutrition accounts for 50 per cent of death of under five children in Kaduna state.
“Adequate diet consists of eating all classes of food in the right proportion. Eg staple food, legumes, animal source foods, fruits vegetables, fats and oil.
“Adequate nutrition essential throughout the lifespan especially within the first 1000 days of life,” she added.
She pointed out that only 16% of children aged between 6 to 23 months were fed appropriately in Kaduna State according to statistics.
“In Kaduna State, 11.7 % are wasted from acute under nutrition, which is a fair percentage compared to that of Nigeria in which 31.5 % are wasted,” she added.
Hajiya Usman who described stunting as the differences between the height of children, when compared to children born on same date, with the shorter ones stunted, said a stunted growth cannot be reversed.
Wasting according to her deals with the body weight of a child when it is lower than average.
“A severely wasted child is 10 times likely to die than a nourished child.
“Reduction of malnutrition can reduce child mortality by 50%,” she added.
The Nutrition specialist said that worried by the scourge, the governor declared state of emergency on malnutrition and his wife, Aisha Ummi Garba el-Rufai set up the Kaduna State Emergency Nutrition Action Plan (KADENAP).
She explained that since then, several efforts have been done, with some in partnership with UNICEF and others in ending malnutrition.
