Knowledge regarding Malnutrition among the Mothers of under Five Children

Nutrition is important for everyone, and it is more important for children because it is directly linked to all aspects of their growth and development, India is one among the many countries where child malnutrition is severe and also malnutrition is a major underlying cause of child mortality in India. Various studies and surveys have been conducted to find out the root causes of child malnutrition.1 The rural India is witnessing more malnutrition among children less than 5 years as higher percentage of stunted, wasted and underweight children were reported from rural areas. Most common causes of malnutrition included faulty infant feeding practice, impaired utilization of nutrients due to infection and parasites. Inadequate food and health security, poor environment condition and lack of proper child care practice.2 The overall knowledge of the subjects in regards to malnutrition under five children showed that 43 mother of under five children poor knowledge i. e. less than 33 % (0-10), 102 mother of under five children who had good knowledge i. e. between 34-67 % (11-20) and 55 mother of under five children had excellent knowledge i. e. above 67 % (21-30) about the malnutrition. Mothers need special knowledge regarding malnutrition to better health of child. The study revealed that majority of mothers belonged to 22-25 years of age group and had inadequate exposure to child. This study gave mothers entry in involvement in nourishment of children and shapes their early transition to motherhood.