Zero Hunger and Child Hospitalization.
When visiting the pediatric section of two teaching hospitals in the central parts of Nigeria and Sudan, I was initially upset at the sight of a child of around 7 years suffering from malaria at an advanced stage, his clear undernutrition I thought was consequent to the ill course of the main disease. As the visits were going on, again a quite relevant proportion of undernutrition appeared in acute patients suffering from limb fractures, acute respiratory infections or common surgery. Two small for gestational age newborn babies in an open cot showed also a slow growth rate
It is clear that the clinical status of certain diseases was aggravated by underweight with the consequence of a greater recovery time greater than in normal weight children. It is well known that underweight (> -2 SD) is associated to: Unduly hospitalization, painful hospitalization (the malaria child was mostly alone) and disadvantageous long term prognosis.
Zero Hunger policies if widespread would lead to a situation where the number of (pediatric) diseases requiring hospitalization would decrease and for a greater efficacy the earlier they are established (pregnancy) the better. Quality of food can also be beneficed through producing lysine enriched cereals in wide areas of the world.
Manuel Moya, MD
University Miguel Hernández. Spain
Manuel Moya