Introduction: Malnutrition, a state of under or over nutrition caused by improper food intake,
causes significant morbidity and mortality in developing countries. It leads to a number of
diseases which can be further divided into those caused by protein-caloric malnutrition and
those caused by vitamin deficiencies, micronutrient, and mineral deficiencies. The purpose of
this study was to identify the factors which contribute to malnutrition and to assess the dietary
pattern in the pediatric population from birth up to five months belonging to poor
socioeconomic areas. The children in this sample presented to a tertiary care hospital in the
district of Sargodha, Pakistan. The findings in this cohort will support the development of an
effective plan to tackle these issues.
Methods: This cross-sectional study was undertaken between June 2014 and December 2014 at
the inpatient pediatric department of District Headquarter Hospital Sargodha. Data were
collected and recorded on a predesigned form which consisted of four sections to record 1)
demographics: parents' level of education, monthly income, number of dependent household
members, and birth interval; 2) anthropometric and personal history, birth history, and degree
of malnutrition; 3) any secondary causes of malnutrition; and 4) feeding history. The data were
analyzed in SPSS v. 20. Chi-squared, phi statistics, and logistic regression analysis were run to
analyze the data.
Results: A total of 294 participants were included in the study. Logistic regression analysis
showed that the degree of malnutrition was associated negatively with increasing age and
positively with family size. A majority of children (144, 49%) were being breastfed for less than
5 minutes followed by 38 (13%) > 5 minutes to 15 minutes, and 2 (0.7%) > 15 minutes while 110
(37 %) infants were not breastfed. Children who were breastfed were less likely to have severe
malnutrition than those who were given formula, fresh cow's or goat's milk, or more than one
type of food.
Conclusion: Children who were breastfed were less likely to have severe malnutrition. The
degree of malnutrition was negatively associated with age and positively associated with family
size.