This document discusses the nutritional status of children aged 6-24 months living in Ika North East Local Government Area of Delta State, Nigeria. It notes that malnutrition is common in early life due to nutritional deficiencies and inadequate complementary feeding practices. Traditional complementary foods in Nigeria are often made from cereals, roots, and tubers, providing mainly carbohydrates and low-quality protein. The study aims to identify the foods and combinations used for complementary feeding, processing methods, nutritional status of children using anthropometric indices, and adequacy of children's diets. The findings could help improve traditional complementary feeding practices and children's nutritional status through nutrition education programs.

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NUTRITIONAL STATUS OF CHILDREN LIVING IN IKA NORTH
EAST LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA OF DELTA
STATECHAPTER ONE
1.0 INTRODUCTION
1.1. Background information
Nigeria like many developing countries in Africa is still far
from reducing the rate of infant and under-five (U5) mortality.
Malnutrition in early life occurs due to nutritional deficiencies
particularly energy and micronutrient deficiencies, including the
foetal growth, development and health, contributing to impairment
in immune competence and cognitive function, blindness,
aneamia, growth failure, and increased morbidity, mortality and
disability (FGN/UNICEF, 2001; ACC/SCN, 2001).
There is a wide range of factors leading to malnutrition. The
most important direct factors include poor feeding practices and /
or short falls in food intake as well as illness. In the case of
children, three factors determine growth failure. They are birth
weight, duration of breast feeding and adequacy of complementary
feeding upto 24 months of age (Dewey et al., 1999).

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It is generally agreed that breast milk is adequate both in
quantity and quality to meet the nutrient and energy requirements
of the infants. Breast milk alone can meet the nutritional needs of
the child for the first-six months of life. After six months, the
quantity of breast milk can no longer sustain the young child and
must be complemented with other foods if the rapid growth rate
usually associated with this period and optimal health must be
maintained (ACC/SCN, 2001 https://projectandmaterials.com/ ).
Complementary foods can be described as any nutrient
containing food/ or liquid other than breast milk given to young
children during the period of complementary feeding. Therefore,
complementary feeding is the period during which foods or liquid
are provided along with continued breast feeding. So this period is
the most critical in the life of the infants. Unfortunately Nigerian
traditional complementary foods are made from cereals, starchy
roots and tubers that provide mainly carbohydrates and low quality
protein. Also in Nigerian the use of fermented gruel or porridge
alone made from maize, sorghum or millets are the leading cause
of protein – energy malnutrition (PEM) in infants and pre-school
children ACC/SCN, 2001; Dewey et al., 1999; Akinrele and
Edwards., 1971).

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The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that
children begin complementary feeding in addition to breast milk
between four to six months of age in order to ensure adequate
growth and nourishment (FMOH / WHO, 1999). In many
developing countries, however, traditional complementary foods
/gruels are based on starchy staple foods such as wheat, rice,
maize or sorghum that produce viscous porridges that are difficult
for children to consume (Hellstrom et al., 1981, Lungqvist et al.,
1999 https://projectandmaterials.com/ ).
The problem of high viscosity, low energy density or both in
complementary food is referred to as dietary bulk. Children
consuming these foods grow poorly and have higher mortality rate
(Allen 1994; Pelletier et al., 1995). Therefore breast and
complementary feeding behaviours are important predictors of
infant and child nutrition, health and survival. In order to detect
protein-energy malnutrition (PEM) and micronutrient deficiencies, it
is very important to assess the nutritional status of any population
at a given time.
1.2 Statement of the Problem
Food plays a very vital role in the life of every individual
especially in young children that are growing. They need certain
foods for their growth and development as well as good health.

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Adequate feeding during childhood will have a lot of impact on
their health and nutritional status in later life.
Firstly, the poor nutritional status of children in early life could
be attributed to the mother’s nutritional status at conception and
during pregnancy. Studies have also shown that malnutrition and
poor nutritional status in children were caused by inadequacies
such as ignorance of food values and body needs due to lack of
education, emotional problems or in difference, denial of protein
rich foods due to cultural beliefs, religion and socio-economic
status, respiratory infections, gastroenteritis, measles, chest and
malaria infections (Brown, 1991 https://projectandmaterials.com/ ).
Moreover, the food consumption habit of a population as
reported by Brown et al. (1998) stated that the age differences in
nutrient intake were related to custom of the people which
stemmed from the habit of sharing food in proportion to age and
position which a member occupies in the household or within a
community.
Consequently, the younger age group would receive the
smallest and poorest quality of food consumed by the household.
Clearly, this custom was indicative of mass ignorance of nutrient
requirements of children which required more than the very good

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quality of food given to the adults for their growth, development
and body resistance.
Moreover, traditional complementary foods such as starchy
staples, cereals and legumes have high content of anti-nutrients
(phytates, tannins, fibres, oxalate etc.) that limit absorption and
utilization of essential nutrients leading to micronutrients
deficiencies. Detrimental traditional practices can also limit the
amount and quality of animal products given to children. Children
in developing countries often receive only small amount of animal
products (if at all) which contain more retinal vitamin D and E,
riboflavin, calcium and zinc etc. (Gibson and Ferguson, 1994
https://projectandmaterials.com/ ).
Furthermore, it has been observed that some mothers
introduced legumes to their infants much later due to the problems
of indigestibility, flatulence and diarrhea. The cooking and
processing methods as well as the oligosaccharides found in
legumes are all contributing factors of late introduction of this food
to the children (Ene-Obong and Obizoba, 1996).
Studies have also shown that whether the children were
introduced too early or late to complementary foods was of no
advantage rather it leads to malnutrition, energy deficiency growth

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failure, lowered immunity, diarrhea and micronutrient deficiencies
(Dewey et al., 1999).
The use of amylase rich flour (ARF) in complementary foods
to reduce viscosity has equally been advocated (Mosha and
Svanberg, 1990). Repeated laboratory studies have equally
encouraged these practices. It is therefore appropriate to study
the nutritional status of children aged 6-24 months living in Ika
North East Local Government of Delta State.
1.3 Objectives of the study
The general objective of this study was to investigate the
nutritional status of children aged 6 – 24 months
The specific objectives were:
1. To identify the foods and the combination used for feeding
children aged 6-24 months.
2. To determine the processing methods used by mothers in
producing complementary foods.
3. To assess the nutritional status of children using
anthropometric indices.
4. To estimate the adequacy of foods given to children.
1.4 Research questions
This research will attempt to answer the following questions:

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i. What are the various complementary foods and
combinations used by mothers?
ii. What are the processing methods used by mothers during
production?
iii. What are the nutritional status of children using the
anthropometric indices?
iv. What is the adequacy of the diets given to the children?
1.5 Significance of the study
The findings of this study will provide useful information to health
personnel on nutrition education, programme planning and
implementation.
The finding could serve as a foundation for nutritionists,
nurses and doctors in counseling pregnant and lactating mothers
on proper usage of complementary foods. It would also highlight
the extent of the problems encountered by mothers. This could be
utilized as a base for nutrition and health education aimed at
improving traditional complementary food practices and
consequently the nutritional status of children living in Ika North
East Local Government Area of Delta State.

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