Assessment of nutritional status of school going girls from 11-14 years in private middle schools in Raipur, Chhattisgarh

Abstract

Background: Adolescent period is a phase of human development comprising the change from childhood to adulthood. Nutritional requirements increase to a great extent during this period as compared to the previous years of growth. Adolescence may represent a window of opportunity to prepare nutritionally for a healthy adult life. The present study was intended to assess the nutritional status in school going adolescent girls. Materials and Methods: This one-year community-based, cross-sectional study was conducted in private middle schools in urban area of Raipur, Chhattisgarh among 480 adolescent girls of 11-14 years. All the selected adolescent girls were personally interviewed with the help of pre-designed and pre-tested questionnaire regarding age, type of family, dietary habits and socio-economic status. A three-day recall method was used to assess nutrient intake. The nutrient intake was calculated using tables of nutritive value of Indian foods. Results: As per WHO nutritional measurement criteria, children were classified as per their anthropometric criteria as, 44.58% had moderate stunting and 2.5% were severely stunted. 0.42% had severe thinness, 38.75% were thin and 2.29% were overweight. The major morbidity among study subjects were, 12.5% had conjunctival pallor(anaemia), 8.96% had dental caries, 5.83% had Vitamin B complex deficiency, 1.04% had angular stomatitis and 0.63% had Vitamin A deficiency. Conclusion: The present study recommends that efforts should be made to reduce the prevalence of malnutrition among adolescent girls. For this regular health check-ups should be done at schools with the help of school authorities and hospitals.