3% have life-threatening severe malnutrition
“If the war does not end immediately, it will have a negative impact on the next generation.”
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) is concerned that one in six infants in the northern Gaza Strip is severely malnourished.
UNICEF announced on the 19th (local time) that the number of children and pregnant women in Gaza suffering from malnutrition is rapidly increasing, citing a recent comprehensive analysis by the Global Nutrition Cluster (GNC).
The survey found that 90% of infants under 2 years of age and 95% of pregnant and breastfeeding women faced severe food poverty. 95% of households eat limited number and amount of meals, and 64% eat only one meal a day.
More than 95% of households responded that they were limiting adults’ food intake in order to provide food for children.
The situation in northern Gaza, which has been under attack since the beginning of the war, is even more serious. Nutritional screening conducted at shelters and public health centers in northern Gaza showed that 15.6%, or one in six, of infants and children under the age of two were severely malnourished.
Of these, approximately 3% suffer from severe, life-threatening malnutrition, which puts them at risk of complications and death if they do not receive emergency treatment. He added that based on data collected last month, the current situation appears to be even more serious.
A similar survey conducted in Rafah, the southernmost city in Gaza, found that 5% of infants and children under the age of 2 were acutely malnourished.
Before the war, the rate of acute malnutrition among children under the age of five in the Gaza Strip was only 0.8%, and such a drastic decline in nutritional status in just three months is unprecedented in the world.
The report analyzed that this was due to the extreme shortage of food and safe water, widespread disease, and weakened nutrition and immunity as the war in Gaza entered its fifth month.
The average amount of water available per person was less than 1 liter per day. According to humanitarian standards, the minimum water needed in an emergency situation is 3 liters per person per day.
Due to lack of food and water, they are also vulnerable to infectious diseases. More than 90% of children under the age of five suffer from at least one infectious disease. The number of children who experienced diarrhea in the past two weeks was 70%, a 23-fold increase compared to the 2022 baseline.
Ted Chaiban, UNICEF Deputy Executive Director, said, “Preventable child deaths will increase explosively in Gaza,” adding, “This will further worsen the already unmanageable level of child deaths in Gaza.”
“If the war does not end immediately, nutritional conditions will continue to deteriorate, leading to preventable deaths and health problems,” he said, adding, “It will affect the rest of the lives of children in Gaza and could have repercussions beyond generations.”
Mike Ryan, head of the World Health Organization (WHO) emergency response team, said, “Hunger and disease are a fatal combination. Children who are hungry, weak, and severely traumatized are more likely to get sick, and especially if they get diarrheal disease, they are unable to absorb nutrients well.” reported.
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.