-As dozens of children remain in impoverished health conditions
BY: Shallon S. Gonlor
Contacts: +231881471044/ (WhatsApp) +231778191516
NIMBA COUNTY — Liberia’s potential children under the age of 5 are facing the most severe form of malnutrition — a silent killer of children.
In Liberia’s fifteen counties, several numbers of children are battling the worsening conditions by the day due to insufficient nutrients in the body.
Meanwhile, in Nimba County our correspondent visited some parts of the county’s electoral districts 4&7 on Monday, January 1, 2024, capturing numerous children in diminishing health conditions as a result of malnutrition.
In an exclusive interview, the mothers of those children named poverty as the major factor, claiming the lack of money has made it almost impossible for them to get the needed nutritious food, and aid to save their children’s life from the killing disease.
They added that, as a result, their children are falling victim to being malnourished, dying by the day, while they (mothers) starved to protect their children amid financial difficulty to survive.
A healthy lifestyle with access to sufficient nutritional food is essential, which sets the course for optimal growth, a strong immune system, and a generally healthy and active life.
Severely malnourished children are to more likely die of diarrhea and measles than well-nourished children.
Hellen, 19, another of two children said she had lost her first child to malnutrition due to financial problems and poverty, stating that when her child fell ill, she did not have the money for treatment.
He spoke Monday to our correspondent who visited some communities where children are struggling with severe acute malnutrition, also known as severe wasting.
Notably, because of poverty, mothers do not have proper nutrition during pregnancy, and are not able to eat properly after birth to combat malnutrition, some medical experts said.
While at some health facilities in District 4, Nimba County where Women Voices newsman visited, children with the deadly disease were admitted for treatment, while others died from the severe acute disease.
In District# 7 at the Bahn Health Center in Bahn City, another mother, Kou, 41, said she had been unable to breastfeed her 18-month-old son, stressing that he is constantly losing weight and cries a lot, claiming it is all because of hunger, but she can not do anything.
She furthered that her 18-month-son died a few months after being diagnosed with severe malnutrition, thus fearing for her other children who came down with the disease.
Hundreds of severely malnourished boys and girls in the area are at risk of dying, calling on the government of Liberia and partners, and humanitarian aid institutions to take critical steps to protect the lives, health, and well-being of children.
According to her, a child is admitted to a health facility for treatment of severe acute malnutrition “every single minute of every single day”.
However, malnourished children also have a higher risk of death from common childhood illnesses such as diarrhea, pneumonia, and malaria.
A latest demographic health survey conducted by the Liberian Health Ministry in late December 2023 indicates that about 30 percent of children under the age of five are malnourished.
The country’s health authorities attributed the situation to food insufficiencies, especially among young babies mothers.
The latest survey reveals over 37,000 children under the age of 5 suffer from ‘stunting’ and are experiencing micronutrient deficiencies because of food insufficiencies.
Stunting negatively affects a child’s brain function, organ development, and immune system which results in poor achievement at school, decreased productivity that earns in adult life with a greater risk of developing obesity and diabetes.
Malnutrition is a condition in which an individual has insufficient energy to maintain their body’s essential functions, including growth, maintenance, and movement.
According to medical sources, malnutrition occurs when a body is deprived of the nutrients it needs to be healthy, comprising primary and secondary effects.
A malnourished person with risk factors of malnutrition can be caused by insufficient protein and micronutrients.
