Going by the data provided by the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), about 8.6% of children under five years are malnourished in Trichy district. According to the recent statistics after monitoring 1,47,028 children – who are under five years – in the district, more than 12,500 are either moderately or severely malnourished. Malnourishment among children is said to be high especially in three revenue blocks: Manapparai, Marungapuri and Vaiyampatti.Malnourishment among adolescent girls, anaemia among expectant mothers and lack of awareness regarding the ideal food for children are said to be the major reasons for malnourishment among children in the district. The issue exists predominantly among children from low-socioeconomic sections of the society and from the families where there are more than two children.Project officer, ICDS, Trichy, T Bhuvaneswari said that while the families from low socio-economic background have less awareness about nutrition for children generally, the care for babies by parents, who have more than two children is less. "The prevalence of higher order birth (HOB), which refers to more than two children in a family, is very high in Manapparai, Marungapuri and Vaiyampatti blocks and it reflects on how malnourishment is high in these particular areas," she told TOI. According to the statistics from last year, the HOB percentage in Trichy district was 7.1%, while in the three blocks, it was around 10%.According to doctors, right from the proper nutrition for a child when in mother’s womb for an average of 270 days, to exclusive breast feeding for the first 180 days since the child is born, providing breast milk till two years of age along with other supplementary food and then providing food with wholesome nutrition are hugely essential.Assistant professor at KAP Viswanatham Government Medical College, Dr P Senthilkumar, said that following a certain cycle when it comes to providing food for a child is very important to prevent malnourishment. "Many think that providing nutritious food for a child is costly. It’s a wrong conception. A child after exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months, should be given semisolid food like porridge varieties till one year and then onwards should slowly be given solid food. Vegetables, fruits and dal varieties help children getting much needed nutrition. Protein, iron and vitamin-rich food are must for holistic nutrition among children," he added.Bhuvaneswari said that since malnourishment among women lead to the same issue for their children, women, right from their adolescent age, must take food with proper nutrition. "That’s why apart from children below five years and antenatal women and prenatal mothers, adolescent girls are also added under our supplementary nutrition programme," she said. Through SNP, the beneficiaries are provided with health mix regularly which is rich in protein, vitamin and minerals.

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