Session Name: Mineral Deficiencies and Dietary Diversity
Household Food Security, Dietary Diversity, and Meal Frequency among Stunted Children in Urban Indonesia
Tuesday, July 30, 2024
11:15 – 13:00 (GMT+7)
Paper Abstract:
Introduction: Adequate nutrition is vital to support optimal health, growth, and development in the first two years of a child's life, especially stunted children. Factors in the household can influence feeding practices to meet the adequate nutrition needed. This study aimed to analyse the correlation between household food security and infant and young child feeding practices among stunted children in urban areas of Indonesia.
Methods: This was a cross-sectional correlation study. The population was a mother of 6-23 months stunted children registered at Posyandu in Surabaya City, East Java, Indonesia. Samples of 139 respondents were taken using a cluster sampling technique. The independent variable was household food security status by US-Food Security Survey Module (US-FSSM). The dependent variable was infant and young child feeding practice with three indicators, including minimum dietary diversity (MDD), minimum meal frequency (MAF), and minimum acceptable diet (MAD) by WHO. Data were then analysed using Chi-Square with the level of significance α< 0.05. Results and Discussions: The study revealed that household food security significantly correlates with stunted children MDD (p=0.047; C=0.232) and MAF (p=0.022; C=0.254). The food groups mainly consumed were grains, roots, and tubers (92.1%). In reverse, the food groups that were less consumed were flesh foods (53.2%). Half of them eat less frequently than expected.
Conclusions: As household food security correlates with stunted children's dietary diversity and meal frequency, community health nurses should provide integrated health promotion to ensure that food-insecure households in urban areas meet the appropriate infant and young child feeding practices.
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