Food security and nutritional status in children linked to child development centers in Cordoba, Colombia

Abstract

Objective: To determine the relationship between food security and nutritional status of children under 5 years of age who attend the Child Development Center of Monteria - Córdoba, Colombia, 2019. Methodology: Crosssectional correlational study with the participation of 388 families distributed in different Child Development Centers of Monteria. The Latin American and Caribbean Food Security Scale survey was applied to parents or representatives, and the children underwent anthropometric assessment under supervision of responsible adults. The categorical variables were measured and their association was assessed using the Chi-square test. Results: Of the 388 families (71.4%) (n = 277) suffered from severe food insecurity. Anthropometric assessment showed that the nutritional status of boys under five years of age reported an adequate weight for height (75.1%), as did girls (73.9%), with the record being higher for boys. Regarding the risk of overweight, a higher percentage was found in girls (13.6%) compared to boys (9.1%). Severe acute malnutrition was found in higher concentration in girls (2.1%) compared to boys (1.0%). Conclusions: Despite the fact that the largest proportion of families suffer from severe food insecurity, no association was found with the various forms of malnutrition suffered by some of the children assessed, which could be linked to the food assistance they receive in the different Child Development Centers in the city of Monteria.