Assessment of Stunting, Underweight and Wasting Among ICDS Children Aged 24 to 60 Months in Chhattisgarh, India

An anganwadi center provides essential services to extremely vulnerable and underprivileged communities, ensuring that these services are accessible at the beneficiaries' doorsteps to promote their active participation. Inadequate nutrition among children can lead to the development of infectious diseases, potentially resulting in long-term physical and mental impairments. This study aims to evaluate the impact of Anganwadi centers on the nutritional status of the children involved. The study employs a cross-sectional approach, examining 780 children aged 24 to 60 months from 50 Anganwadi centers in Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh, India. Anganwadi centres supplied information on socio-demographic characteristics, and facilities offered in Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) centres and anthropometric measures were taken by researcher. The study reveals that the prevalence rates of stunting, underweight, and wasting among the children are 48.7%, 46.3%, and 28.8%, respectively, highlighting a critical situation. Children who did not regularly receive supplementary food from Anganwadi centers exhibited poorer nutritional status compared to those who did. Additionally, a lack of strong rapport between the workers and the mothers and children may significantly contribute to undernutrition. Continuous nutrition surveillance is essential, with particular emphasis on the poorest and most severely malnourished children. Efforts should focus on providing food of better quality and variety to improve nutritional outcomes.