Abstract
Background
The nutritional status of children below five years is considered as one of the most important indicators for child survival and it is a reflection of their overall health.
Aims
The main objective of this research is to investigate the nutritional status of children below five years of age and to assess the different associating factors that could likely influence the nutritional status of the children.
Methods
A cross-sectional survey targeted 440 children aged below five years who were randomly selected from four clusters in the Jazan region. A questionnaire was designed to collect a set of information related to the nutritional status of the children.
Results
The prevalence of underweight among the children was 15.9 per cent. Moderately underweight accounted for 14.1 per cent [95 per cent CI:11.8-19.0], while less than 1 percent [0.8 per cent; 95 per cent CI:0.28-2.25] were severely underweight. Up to 89.5 per cent [95 per cent CI:85.9-92.3] of the children had normal weight for their height. Prevalence of wasting was only 10.5 per cent; about 9.9 per cent moderately, while 0.6 per cent were severely wasted. No significant difference was found between these indicators for males and females. Significant positive correlation was found between underweight, stunting and wasting among the children of 0-59 months (r=0.578, p<0.0001) and (r=0.413, p<0.0001), respectively.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the nutritional status of children under five years produced acceptable intermediate results, but it is still below levels for other parts of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). Future interventions are needed to address some of the shortfall in the nutritional status among the Jazan population.