In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic provoked a global health crisis, with a significant impact on the existing burden of malnutrition. Now, many more children will face an unprecedented nutrition crisis and are at risk of death from preventable causes.
Taking necessary measures to tackle the secondary effects of COVID-19 on food security and malnutrition will require a rights-based approach, which should guide the UK Government’s current and future policies and programmes on nutrition....
Nearly half of all deaths of children under five are attributable to undernutrition. Malnutrition is a hurdle right at the start of a child’s development. The COVID-19 pandemic is likely to slow progress and risks pushing more children into malnourishment. Despite a strong position as a global leader in tackling malnutrition, the UK government’s current commitment to nutrition expires in 2020.
This document is the International Coalition for Advocacy on Nutrition (ICAN) UK's...
A recent poll found that the majority of the UK public support calls for the UK Government to step up in the fight against malnutrition. The poll comes on World Food Day, as charities urgently press the Government to renew their commitments to tackle global malnutrition, which are set to expire at the end of this year.
Malnutrition contributes to 45% of all under-5 deaths worldwide. It is estimated that 487 more children per day could die of undernutrition in 2020 than was predicted...
In 2018, 5.3 million children under the age of five died, with undernutrition being the a key cause in nearly half those deaths. At the same time, low- and middle-income countries are wintessing a rise in child overweight and obesity. One in three children globally suffers from one or more forms of the triple-burden of malnutrition - undernutrition, mirconutrient deficiencies, and overweight and obesity. In October 2019, the Secretary of State for International Developmet recommitted to...
Malnutrition is caused by having key nutrients missing from your diet. It is responsible for more ill health than any other cause. Malnutrition prevents vaccines from working and devastates immune systems. This can cause death, lifelong serious illness and dramatically hinders the ability for countries and communities to develop economically. The good news is that malnutrition is preventable and treatable - and 2020 will be a key moment in the fight to end it once and for all.
Around eight out of ten of the world's malnourished children live in middle-income countries (MICs). This report assesses the silent everyday emergency of malnutrition in 89 relatively non-fragile MICs, which is damaging the survival and potential of populations in these countries, and therefore limiting what they can achieve. Based on available data, the report also reviews national policies for nutrition, and inequities in nutritional outcomes in these countries. It then identifies key...
In 2015, the UK government committed to improving the nutrition for 50 million individuals by 2020. Even though the 2017 general election led to a change in leadership, DFID are committed to reaching this target. So far, DFID have only been reporting the 'reach' of their nutrition-relevant programmes, as opposed to nutrition improvement resulting from these. However, in 2016 they developed a nuanced methodology based on 'intensity of nutrition reach' (high, medium, or low) as a proxy measure...
Nutrition for women in pre-pregnancy, pregnancy, and over the first two years of the child’s life is of utmost importance for the survival, health and development of mothers and their children . In pregnancy, requirements of energy, protein, and essential micronutrients are increased not only to maintain the mother’s own health, but to also support optimal physical and brain development in the foetus and thereafter in the young child. Thus there is...
Physical growth and brain development takes place most rapidly during childhood, particularly during the first two years of life. It is essential from birth that children are provided a diet which fully meets their nutritional requirements. Good nutrition must be accompanied by interventions to prevent illness, such as essential immunization. To maximise health and development in this group, nutrition must be integrated within policy and programmes...
Nutritional requirements increase in adolescence (10-19 years). These increases are vital to enable adolescents to reach their full physical, cognitive and development potential in adulthood. Good nutrition also contributes significantly to reducing episodes of illness and improving school retention and concentration. To maximise health and development in this group, nutrition must be integrated within policy and programmes targeting adolescents....
RESULTS UK is a charity registered as RESULTS Education in England and Wales (1015286), a company limited by guarantee (2761858), and a charity registered in Scotland (SC041481).
