Malnutrition trends in preschool children from a primary healthcare center in Baghdad: A comparative two-year study (2006 and 2012)

Background: Nutritional disorders still represent a major problem faced by developing countries. Surveying such problems is a step towards planning proper interventions, which contributes significantly to declines in under-five mortality rates. Aims: To study the state of nutritional trends in children under five years of age, attending a primary healthcare center in Al Shoula district, Iraq, in 2006 and 2012. Demographic features and feeding practices that may have had an effect on the nutritional status of children were also studied. Subjects and methods: Two cross-sectional surveys were conducted on children aged two to five years, in a primary healthcare center in Baghdad. Children attending for immunization were included (500 in 2006 and 570 in 2012), their mothers were interviewed, and the body mass index of the child was calculated. Children who were overweight and obese were identified, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention charts, as those suffering from stunting. Nutritiona...