What do you mean by zero-food children?
Zero-food children are babies between six and 23 months old who haven't had any animal milk or solid or semi-solid foods in the last 24 hours. Newborns are usually breastfed.
But after six months, babies need more than just breastfeeding. They need extra nutrients like protein, vitamins, and minerals from other foods like milk and certain vegetables.
Babies who don't get this extra food for a day are called 'zero-food children.' A study found that many babies aged six to 23 months in India go without extra food for a whole day. The study was published in the journal JAMA Network Open.
What has this study found?
The study looked at 92 low-and-middle-income countries (LMICs). In terms of percentage, India is third, with 19.3% of children being zero-food children. Guinea (21.8%) and Mali (20.5%) are the top two.
However, in terms of numbers, India has the most 'zero-food' children, with 6.7 million (67 lakh). Nigeria and Pakistan are the next two countries.
The data for India comes from the National Family Health Survey 2019-2021. The study also says the COVID-19 pandemic might have increased the number of zero-food children in the country.
What does this study highlight?
The large number of zero-food children tells us that proper steps must be taken to ensure a child receives proper nutrition during their growing phase.
Luckily, the research also found that most of these children were breastfed. This shows that the little kids did not have completely empty stomachs and received some food.
Is there any Indian government scheme to help provide nutrition to young children?
Yes, there's a program called POSHAN Abhiyaan that started in March 2018. It's meant to make sure kids aged 0 to 6, young girls, and pregnant women get proper nutrition. It also wants to reduce stunting and wasting in children and anaemia in women, children, and girls.
However, malnutrition remains a big problem in India, especially among children. So, the government needs to make sure they have good plans in place to meet the country's children's nutritional needs.
