Stunting Classification Among Toddlers Using Decision Tree C4.5 in Berastagi City

Stunting is a condition where a child's height significantly falls below the average for their age, primarily due to prolonged malnutrition and inadequate nutrient intake. This condition poses long-term challenges, affecting both physical growth and cognitive development. This study focuses on developing a predictive model using the C4.5 Decision Tree algorithm to classify the stunting status of children under five. The dataset comprises nutritional status data of toddlers collected from the Berastagi Health Center. Incorporating attributes such as gender, birth weight and height, age in months, weight, height, and the height-to-age ratio. The model aims to enhance the accuracy of stunting classification to support targeted prevention and treatment strategies. When compared to Naive Bayes, the Decision Tree C4.5 demonstrated superior performance, achieving an F1 score and average accuracy of 86%. This reflects a robust balance between precision and recall, underscoring its reliability in identifying children at risk of stunting. The research highlights the critical role of data-driven methodologies in public health. With its high accuracy, the model serves as a promising tool for healthcare providers, enabling more effective interventions to reduce stunting prevalence and improve nutritional outcomes among children under five years of age.