Malnutrition in Africa

The World Bank has estimated in April 2016 that, "There are 17.6 million children in sub-Saharan Africa who suffer from acute malnutrition" (SOS Children's Villages). Malnutrition includes not having access to clean water and a balance diet. Another statistic posed by UNICEF is that between 1990 and 2014,  children who have suffered from stunted growth in West and Central Africa has increased from 19.9 million to 28 million while the number declined else where in the world (SOS Children's Villages). Stunted growth is an impairment of growth in children whether it be psychologically, height, weight, malnutrition, and disease. 

Recently, in Rwanda, children were asked to share what they think would stop malnutrition occurring in children. AllAfrica reports that a 14 years old girl named Desire suggested that since parents are in charge of their children's diets, they should be taught "....the causes, effects, and treatment. With this knowledge mothers can ensure that their children eat and grow healthy" (AllAfrica). Another child, 12 years old,  Keria mentioned. "From my understanding, malnutrition is caused by lack of vitamins and food nutrients in the body, mainly due to poor feeding. So in my opinion, it's good to ensure that we eat foods rich in vitamins and other nutrients to be on a safe side" (AllAfrica). A third child, Sonia who is also 12 years old stated, "Besides proper feeding, it's good that children go for regular medical check-up to ensure that they are experiencing normal growths and treat any signs of malnutrition in the early stage. Milk is one of the best foods that prevents malnutrition" (AllAfrica). These children know what needs to be done to ensure they and their families and friends remain healthy as malnutrition is one of the largest reported health issue of Africa. Our only hope can be is that health education such as this continues to spread and they receive the essential foods and vitamins needed to remain healthy. 

https://www.sos-usa.org/our-impact/childrens-statistics/africahttp://allafrica.com/stories/201711150110.html