Bringing a Healthy Smile on Dyammavva
India is still in a critical situation when it comes to tackling malnutrition as poor sanitation and low social status are big hurdles that stand in the way of achieving desired results. The consequences of child malnutrition for mortality are enormous. In India, with one of the highest percentages of undernourished children in the world, the situation is dire.
To tackle this problem, ‘Magu Nagu’, a chronic malnutrition-free program of the Hubli Sandbox is implemented as a pilot in Dharwad district in North Karnataka, as an attempt to come up with a demonstrated model to improve the health of over 1500 severely malnourished children in the project area.
Dyammavva Pawar is one such example. Dyammavva was visibly malnourished when the Magu Nagu team visited her house in a slum in Haranshikari Veedi, Gangadharnagar, Hubballi. She was nearly a year old, yet her body would not move much, except her eyes. Her stomach appeared bulged for her age and she was continuously suffering from diarrhea for over a year. Though hospitalized quite often, her health didn’t improve.
Dyammavva was assessed to be under severe acute malnutrition (SAM) category by the Magu Nagu team, with a weight of 6.7 kg, and based on the parameters such as height and MUAC. Their socio-economic conditions, ignorance towards hygiene, and lack of nutrition, while she was conceived, led to the baby’s malnutrition. Suresh Pawar, her laborer-father could not fetch enough to provide his family nutritious food.
With the intervention of Magu Nagu, Dyammavva’s weight improved to 10.740 kg. She was fed spirulina, eeZeepaste and dry banana, which her body began to accept slowly after bouts of diarrhea. Diarrhea eventually stopped, and her health improved drastically.
Says her mother Lakshmi Pawar, “Thanks to the care of the team from Deshpande Foundation, my daughter’s health has improved significantly and she is as lively as other healthy children of her age. She is able to utter few words now.”
Like Dyammavva, Magu Nagu has diagnosed around 1550 Severely Acute Malnourished(SAM) children in the areas of Hubballi – Dharwad and is helping the new buds to live a healthy lifestyle.