The problems of malnutrition in Armenia

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• The problems of malnutrition in Armenia
• Luiza Gharibyan, PhD
• Associate professor
• Yerevan State Medical University,
  Department of Hygiene and Ecology,
• Armenia

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The transition to the new social-economic
conditions creates deep changes in living
standards in Republic and thats why the most
part of population is appeared under the
threshold of poorness, which reflects on the
health index level.
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The situation is threatening for the
social health. One of the most important indexes
of social health is childrens physical
development. In literature there is a lot of
information about the decrease of anthropometrics
indexes during the wars and economic crashes.
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• In poor countries the number of short and thin
  children (according to the standards) is bigger,
  because of malnutrition.
• Over 200 million children in developing
  countries under the age of five are malnourished.

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Malnutrition contributes to more than half of
the nearly 12 million under-five deaths in
developing countries each year. Malnourished
children often suffer the loss of precious mental
capacities.They fall ill more often. If they
survive, they may grow up with lasting mental or
physical disabilities.
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Using data from 53 developing countries,
researchers from Cornell University have
concluded that over half of those 13 million
child deaths each year are associated with
malnutrition.
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Further, they show that more than three
quarters of all these malnutrition-assisted
deaths are linked not to severe malnutrition but
to mild and moderate forms.
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The major nutrition problems in the world
are 1.Proteinenergy malnutrition (PEM)
2.Iodine deficiency disorders
(IDD)3.Iron deficiency 4.Vitamin A deficiency
or hypovitaminosis A(VAD)5. Nutrition-related
chronic diseases
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In the public imagination, the home of the
malnourished child is sub-Saharan Africa. But the
league tables clearly show that the
worst-affected region is not Africa but South
Asia.
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Just over 30 of Africa's children are
underweight, but the corresponding figure for
South Asia is over 50. And in Bangladesh and
India, the proportion of children malnutrished is
very significantly higher than in even the
poorest countries of the sub-Sahara.
13
Measured by absolute numbers, it is to be
expected that problems of poverty will be
concentrated in South Asia, simply because of the
sheer size of its populations (India alone has
50 more people than 47 countries of sub-Saharan
Africa put together).
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But when the proportion affected is also far
higher, as is the case with child malnutrition,
then the centre of gravity of the problem shifts
still further.

• That is why half of the world's malnourished
  children are to be found in just three countries
  - Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan.

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• Over 8 million of the 13 million under-five
  deaths in the world each year can be put down to
  diarrhea, pneumonia and malaria.

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Malnutrition around the world
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Birth weight is an obvious place to begin
the search. In all countries and cultures, low
birth weight is the best single predictor of
malnutrition.
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• Birth weights below 2,500 grams have been found
  to be very closely associated with poor growth
  not just in infancy but throughout childhood.

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The purpose of this work is to find out the
health deviation of children in Armenia, because
of malnutrition malnutrition and organize
corresponding social-medical help.
20
We assessed children in Yerevan in 4
secondary schools (No. 32, No. 38. No. 19, No. 8)
of childrens anthropometrics indexes (about
4000 children) and data of 2000 newborns. We
found each childs family social economic status,
parents health condition and possible harmful
factors possible negative influence on a child.
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Obtained datas analysis shows that the
physical development indexes are lower than the
standards, in the families where the malnutrition
is organized badly or its connected with the low
standards of living. We want to present you the
following dates obtained in 2 different regions
in Yerevan about seven-year-olds schoolchildren
height and weight.
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We compared the schoolchildren of No. 38
(Shengavit region), No. 8 (Central region) in
1986-1988 period Shengavit region childrens
height and weight was higher than now. Analyze
dates show, that first form boys average height
decreased 2.64cm (dignity index t3.6), girls is
2.21cm (dignity index t3.07).
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Yerevan deferent regions seven-years-old
childrens height and weight in 80s. Low
height boys number increased in 7.8 and girls
- in 10.9.
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Besides it there is a decrease in number
of children with good physical development
correspondingly mothers with high education in
15.23, mothers with secondary education in
7.16.
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The boys body mass decreased in 1.22cm
(t3.2). In the same school among 140 examined
childrens hemoglobin average level is
m112.30.37, which is certainly lower than the
norms.
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Despite the No. 38 school childrens indexes, No.
8 Pushkin school 1994-1996 first form
schoolchildrens physical development indexes
average level is higher. Its known, that the
people attend this school are from well-provided
families. The parents mostly have high education
and have jobs.
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So the presented material first gives us
right to speak about childrens malnutrition. In
Armenia during the last 10 years many families
rations contains mostly cheap hydrocarbon origin
food. While protein containing food such as meat,
dairy, egg is necessary for the drawing body of
young children.
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Thus 79gr protein from which 47gr must
have animal origin, fats 79gr (16gr animal
origin), hydrocarbon 315gr, calcium 1100mg,
phosphor 1650mg, iron 18mg, vitamin B1
1.4mg, vitamin B2 1.6mg, vitamin C 60mg,
vitamin A 0.7mg is one day food physiological
standard and the food total calorie is 2300kcal.
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So it is necessary 47gr animal origin
protein for the normal growth of body. Its
necessary to mention, that 1 egg contains 6.25gr
complete protein, 100gr meat contains 16-20gr
proteins and 100ml milk contains
3.3ml.Schoolchilds breakfast must contain
1/3-1/4 of the ration.
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The most part of the families, which have
been studied by us, are in bad financial
condition and the expenses of each family per day
is less than 1 USD.
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The main part of ration in these families
contains hydrocarbon potato, pasta, bread and
the usage of food providing protein (egg, meat,
dairy) is very low.
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Bronchitis in Yerevan(primary morbidity of
children)1988-1998
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The number of newborn with low weight per
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The number of sick newborn per in Charentsavan
(R.Armenia)
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Within the transition period to the new social
relations, and correspondingly to the new public
health care system the efforts are to be done in
public health management sphere.
CONCLUSION
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First of all, we must revise the worn
out approaches in order to put the health care
activities in correspondence with the new
realities. Meanwhile we must give due attention
to the existing experience in this sphere in
the countries with the developed health care
system.