Child Rights:Nutrition and Health

Child Rights:Nutrition and Health

Child Rights: Nutrition and HealthIn todays fast developing world we have forgotten the most important thing to the world,children.We come across many cases of deaths of children but we rarely pay attention to such news.Its high time we took notice and prevent such acts.Today we shall take a look at Rights of Children regarding Nutrition and Health .

Right to survivalThe Convention on Rights of Children states the Right to Live is applicable to every childIt is the Governments duty to ensure that its nations children survive and become healthy

NutritionEvery child whether born rich or poor,in any caste or creed has the right to proper nutritionNutrition simply means The process of providing or obtaining the food necessary for health and growthLack of nutrition is the a major cause for stunted growth in childrenChildren are not able to get proper nutrition due various causes such as poverty,increasing food prices and dietary habitsLack of Nutrition is also known as Malnutrition

MalnutritonMalnutrition is the condition that results from taking an unbalanced diet in which certain nutrients are lacking, in excess (too high an intake), or in the wrong proportions.Malnutrition occurs not only in poor countries but also in fast developing nations like ours.Malnutrition is a global crisis which has hampered the growth of millions of children.The World Health Organization(WHO) considers malnutrition as a major threat to world health

The effects of malnutrition are very severe and lead to growth disorders.Malnutrition is the cause of about 5 million child deaths every year!So many innocent lives lost all because they couldnt get proper nutrition.This tells us how grave the situation is.We shall now look into malnutrition along with its causes,effects and prevention

Causes of Malnutrition Malnutrition is not something that has occurred suddenly.It is the result of various factors that are a result of todays lifestyle and politics.Some major factors causing malnutrition are:Population ExplosionLack of nutrtious foodPoor feeding habitsOver priced food due to inflationConstant infections like diarrheoa,jaundice etc

Population explosion causes scarcity of food products which the poor people cannot procure New hybrid varieties of crop are produced which give more yield but at the cost of their nutritious value.Therefore less nutrients are obtained from the same amount of food.As not everyone can afford more expensive varieties,again malnutrition is caused.Poor feeding habits also play a important role.Todays children like to binge on junk food which are filled with nothing but empty calories in the form of saturated fats and sugars.Government policies and taxes often cause the price of food grains to skyrocket leaving the poor in lurch to fill their stomachsConstant illnesses affect the childs body and it can no longer absorb nutrients from food effectively.The common scene we see here is that the poor are the worst affected.They have no resources to fill their stomach let alone have nutritious food

Effects of MalnutrionThe effects of malnutrition can range from mild to life threatening .Some of them are harmless but the severe ones can kill.Some of the effects are:FatigueNauseaDizzinessVery low immunity against infectionsDry scaly skinHair lossAnemiaMemory loss

The more harmful effects are;Learning disabilitiesUnhealthy weight lossStunted growthWeaknessHypokalemia- potassium deficiencyHemorrhage- vitamin K deficiencyBehavioural DisordersWe often see images of children with twig like limbs and a large belly and head.Such disfigurements are not uncommon in those affected by malnutrition.Prevention of malnutritionFollowing are the ways to prevent malnutrition:Educating womenImprove dietReplenish deficient nutrients through high energy foods like peanut butter or. Ready-to-use Therapeutic Food There arent much methods to prevent or treat malnutrition exept creating awareness and fullfill missing nutrients

Health The right to good health come under the Right To Survival and health is key to ones survivalChildren are one of the most vulnerable of all humans.Their immune system is not strong enough and they are more likely to contract infections.This risk is however most high in child labourersSadly its a fact that India is one of the hubs for child labour.Thousands are employed in dingy factories and warehouses all over India doing harmful jobs such as firework making,zari work etc.This evil has been going on for a very long time and has a very adverse effect on the children. The health hazard due to child labour are;Rapid skeletal growthHearing lossGreater absorption of chemicalsStunted growthPremature growth of organs and tissuesAllergiesThose working in agrilculture and industries are exposed to dangerous pesticides and chemicals.Being forced to live in cramped dirty rooms,there is high chance of infections

StatisticsThe most number number of deaths are in under developed countries

Mortality in India due to malnutrition

Some Comparisons with Other NationsMalnourishment in States

Nutritionto the top% of infants with low birthweight, 1998-2005*30% of children (1996-2005*) who are: exclusively breastfed (