Assessment of Malnutrition, a Sustainable Development Goal, among School-going Adolescents in South Punjab, Pakistan

Abstract

Poor nutritional status is a critical issue affecting school-based adolescents, particularly in compromised socio-demographic regions like Lodhran, South Punjab, Pakistan. Adolescents are in a key developmental stage, and inadequate nutrition can have long-term impacts on their health, cognitive development, and academic performance. Measurement of nutritional status is crucial to understand malnourishment status when teens are in growth spurt. Objective: In this study, the objective is to assess the prevalence of malnutrition in the adolescents of 15 to 18 year old. Methodology: Setting and Study Design: This study employed a descriptive cross-sectional design conducted in peri-urban/ rural schools of Lodhran. The study population was school-going adolescents from 15-18 years old. It was adolescent reported study. Sample Size: Sample size for study population was calculated as 369. However, 384 adolescents’ data was entered for final analysis. Data collection: The data collection involved questionnaire containing socio-demographic questions, and anthropometric measurements (weight and height) to determine malnutrition status. Pilot study was also conducted to examine feasibility of study. The study was conducted after the approval of Institutional Review Board. Data Analysis: Descriptive statistics are employed to assess the demographic characteristics and malnutrition. WHO Anthro Plus Software was used to measure Height for age and BMI for age z score. While SPSS version 27 was used to calculate frequency, percentages and mean scores. Results:  The data analysis included 384 participants, with a mean age of 16.58 years and a majority of male (46.1%) and female (53.9%). The mean height for age Z score (HAZ) was -0.9992, indicating mild stunting, and the mean BMI were -1.2584, indicating moderate underweight. 131(34.1%) participants had thinness, while 35(9.1%) were overweight and 107 (27.9%) were stunted. Conclusion: Adolescents of far flung rural areas would be better able to make balanced food choices and be more resilient to future acute and chronic malnutrition tendencies if targeted nutrition education programs were incorporated into the school curriculum.  In order to build age-appropriate social protection plans that integrate food assistance programs with home income growth activities, vegetable gardens, small-scale cattle farming along with parental education and awareness programs, stunting and thinness among adolescents can be addressed. Public officials should put these findings into practice for targeted policy intervention strategies.