A study of the principal determinants of severe malnutrition in preschool children in a semi-arid area of Kenya

Abstract

In order to investigate aetiological and epidemiological determinants of malnutrition, two groups of preschool children were compared. The study group comprised the total in-patient population of the Kibwezi Rehabilitation Centre fo! severely malnourished children in Machakos District, Kenya. ,The control group comprised children matched for age, sex and location who were determined to be adequately nourished. It was found that the study group differed

significantly from the control group with regard to many of the variables examined. Using discriminant analysis, it was found that income (amount and source) , education, marital status, birth interval and land availaoility were the most significant variables differentiating the two groups. A table was developed which, using selected indicators of risk, is able to correctly identify between 73.4 and 92.5% of children potentially at risk of becoming severely malnourished.