Читать книгу The Road to Good Nutrition - Группа авторов - Страница 102

Lack of adequate nutrients in the first 1,000 days will, for example, lead to irreversible gaps in brain development. The outcome of brain development by the age of two years determines to a large extent a person’s mental capacity for the rest of his/her life, including success in schooling and income earning.

Not only stunted children are affected by undernutrition: non-stunted children in populations with a considerable prevalence of stunting are also likely to be affected, i.e., they have not reached their full potential either, although their length is not below the cut-off which classifies them as ‘stunted’.

Girls who grow up stunted are more likely to suffer complications during childbirth as adolescents or adults, because they have a smaller pelvis. Breaking the intergenerational cycle of undernutrition thus also requires good obstetric care, to facilitate the birth of a larger baby, born to a mother who may have been stunted herself but then had good nutrition pre-pregnancy and during pregnancy, resulting in the development of a larger infant in the womb.

Stunting typically co-occurs with micronutrient deficiencies, because foods that are rich in nutrients that are essential for linear growth are also good sources of other micronutrients. This also explains why stunting is such an important indicator, reflecting a shortage of essential nutrients during the most critical developmental phase in life.

As such, stunting has been linked to increased morbidity and mortality, delayed mental development, poor school performance, and reduced intellectual capacity. This in turn affects income in adult life, as well as economic productivity at national level. Furthermore, stunting is also related to increased risk of overweight and non-communicable disease such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease later in life.

The fact that much of this damage cannot be undone later in life means that it is essential to prevent stunting.