A Cross-Sectional Study On The Prevalence Of Stunting Among Elementary School Students In Lahore

Original Article

Abstract

Objective: Our study aims to determine the prevalence of obesity and stunting in Pakistani children between the ages of 3 to 12 years.
Study design: A Cross-Sectional Study
Duration and place of study: Community Medicine Department University College of Medicine and Dentistry, UOL, Lahore from Jan 2022 to Jan 2023
Method: The study included 65 children between 3 to 12 years old. Age, sex, weight, and height were recorded for each enrolled patient after obtaining the parents of any minors’ informed written permission. The demographic status of mothers was also noted. About the weight of the patients included, the stunting frequency was noted. The whole set of data was analyzed using SPSS 28.0.

Results: In this research, out of 65 youngsters, 40 (60.4%) were male and 25 (39.6%) were female. The children involved in the study had a mean age of 04.08±13.38 years and a mean weight of 16.15±11.49 kg. Children measured 104.05 +/- 1.18 cm on average.n-38 (56.4%) of the patients were underweight, n-43 (33.6%) were fat children, and 05 (06.2%) of the patients were very underweight. According to maternal status, the majority of them came from low-income families. There were 10 (12.2%) stunted children, of whom 04 (5.4%) were fat and the remaining 07 (12%) were underweight. Of the ten children with stunting, five (54.6%) were female and four (37.3%) were male.
Conclusion: This study highlights a exceptional occurrence of stunting amongst number one school youngsters in Lahore, with a great proportion being underweight. Addressing maternal socioeconomic status and imposing focused interventions are crucial to mitigate the weight of stunting and promote healthful increase and development in this population.

Keywords: Stunting, Children, Lahore, Socioeconomic Status