Improvement of malnutrition by vulnerable population in Viet Nam

Vi Thi Dong, a 16-month-old baby lives with her parents and older sister in the mountainous district of Thuong Xuan in Thanh Hoa province, home to many ethnic groups. For three years, her parents have been building a simple house for the family at the end of a small dirt road two kilometers from the health center. Traveling on this road is difficult when it rains.

Dong is undernourished as are 23 percent of the children in Thuong Xuan, a district with a poverty rate of 39 percent. Disease outbreaks, frequent natural disasters, and poor feeding practices contribute to high rates of malnutrition.  One-third of the children under two years of age in the district are stunted.

At 14 months, Dong weighed only 5 kilogrammes. When Dong’s parents worked on the farm during day time, her ten-year-old older sister took care of her. She fed her chewing rice, sometimes with salt, but rarely with meat because the family could not afford it. Plain chewing rice is a traditional food of Thai people for children.  Dong’s diet and the diet of many other children in Thuong Xuan are inadequate in quantity and quality. 

Under the project “Improving the nutrition status of children 0-24 months in Thuong Xuan District, Thanh Hoa Province” funded by Irish Aid as an extension of activities implemented under the Alive & Thrive initiative, Dong was enrolled in the integrated management of acute malnutrition (IMAM) program in July 2013. Every Friday, her mother took her to the nearest commune health center to monitor her growth and receive ready-to-use therapeutic foods. Her mother was also counseled on how to care for her child. With close monitoring and support from commune health staff, Dong started to gain weight. She gained one kilo after the first three weeks of treatment. Her mother said, “My family is happy that my daughter has gained weight. My husband and I are now fully aware of the importance of taking care of our children.”

As of August 2013, 53 children with severe acute malnutrition were identified and took part in the IMAM program in four communes of Thuong Xuan district. Initial results show that children like the therapeutic foods and gain weight, which brings happiness and hope to families in this vulnerable area of the country.

(Written by Nguyen Van Huan, Program Manager, A&T Viet Nam)