(Mugumya, D 2022). Factors associated with Malnutrition among children admitted to Mwanamugimu nutrition unit, Mulago Hospital.( unpublished undergraduate dissertation) Makerere University, Kampala Uganda.

Abstract

Malnutrition generally implies under nutrition and refers to all deviations from adequate and optimal nutrition status in infants, children and adults. In children, malnutrition manifests as underweight and stunting (short stature) and severely undernourished children present with symptoms and signs that characterize conditions known as kwashiorkor, marasmus and marasmic-kwashiokor. Malnutrition threatens to destroy a generation of children in Uganda. More than 2.4 million are stunted and the damage caused by stunting is irreversible. Half of the children under five and a quarter of women of child bearing age are anemic. Whether poor or wealthy, children are malnourished for similar reasons. Women tend to get pregnant when young and have low birth weight babies which predisposes children to malnutrition. Repeated childhood infections such as diarrhea and low breastfeeding rates also lead to wasting and stunting. This study was aimed at determining factors associated with healthy mothers with malnourished children admitted at Mwanamugimu nutrition unit, Mulago hospital. Out of 63 children who took part in the study, 55.56% were males and 44.44% were females. Most of the children (60.32%) were not exclusively breastfed for the first six months of their life, and only 39.68% had been breastfed exclusively for the first six months. 53.97% of the children were taken care of by their single mothers, 25.40% had just a care taker (grandmother, sister, aunt) and 23.81 had their married mothers. Over 38% of the children came from families with more than seven members, 49.21 % had 4 to 7 members and only 12.7% had families with less than 4 household members. Most of the mothers/caretakers attained only primary education of none (70%), 23.81 had attained up to secondary level and only 4.76% had attained tertiary education. Most of the mothers/ caretakers (41.27%) were unemployed or had lost their employment after the admission of their child, 34.92% were street vendors, hawkers or daily earners (informally employed), 17.46% were subsistent farmers (peasants) and only 6.35% were civil servants.