Malnutrition in Madagascar

Since I wrote about me being "maventy", I'll write about malnutrition now, like any good health volunteer would do. 

These statistics were provided by Peace Corps which were taken from the World Bank Nutrition Profiles. 

Madagascar has the 5th highest rate of stunting in the world, tied with Malawi.

15 percent of infants are born with a low birth weight. 

53 percent of children under the age of five are stunted.

Under nutrition rates have stayed virtually constant in Madagascar over the past two decades.

Madagascar has higher rates of stunting than many of its neighboring countries and income peers in the Africa region. This shows that it is possible to achieve lower rates of under nutrition despite low per capita income. 

Under nutrition is not just a problem of poverty. Children are undernourished in almost one half of even the richest households. This is not typically an issue of food access, but of caring practices and disease.

Malnourishment increases the likelihood of falling sick and enhancing the severity of diseases. 

I am not educated in public health nor nutrition to an extent level but I have witnessed chronic malnutrition, acute malnutrition, over nutrition and an inadequate intake of micronutrients in the village I live in and the surrounding villages. 

The main dish of the Malagasy people is rice. White rice or red rice. They eat it three times a day, everyday. They typically make it with salt (as with all dishes-I imagine that is their main seasoning) or oil. Some families eat rice with "rô" which is a side dish, usually some sort of green vegetable that has been boiled or steamed (until no nutrients are left to consume) or pasta. Lots of times I see people eating pasta on top of rice. And then as a snack they have banana bread or cassava bread. Another snack is boiled sweet potatoes. Basically carbs on carbs on carbs, all day, everyday. 

An average family of 7 eats about 10 cups of rice everyday. An average cup of white rice is 400AR, the same amount as 4 carrots or 3 bananas or 6 tomatoes or 4 medium sized zucchini (in my region, in good growing season). 

So, I'm doing my best to push better eating habits and a balanced diet by attending baby weighing in each village in my commune. During the weighing we can see which children are undernourished by looking at their growth chart and arm circumference. I ask questions regarding the health of the child or children in the family and what meals are provided and when. This is also an opportunity to teach about proper breast feeding and weaning along with family planning. We brainstorm new snacks for the kids throughout the day, budgeting for nutritious foods at the market, and how to properly prepare and cook meals. 

A lot of these practices have to do with the individual and whether or not they want to change their daily routine or try new ways of cooking (taught by a white girl with no children) after many years of being taught the same thing. A lot of our work as Peace Corps Volunteers is working in behavior change and that can be tricky. But I'm determined to help my village raise their children to be strong and healthy by teaching, showing, sharing, and conversing new ways to provide a balanced diet. 

At a later date I will write about my new garden and my gardening club!