At Bangladesh Shishu Hospital in Agargaon, Dhaka, hundreds of anxious parents wait outside doctors’ chambers with their children.
Among them is Halima Begum, cradling her six-month-old baby. “My child has not been eating properly and has very low weight,” she told Dhaka Tribune, explaining why she sought medical help.
Halima’s story reflects a broader crisis.
According to Unicef, two out of every three Bangladeshi children under the age of five lack access to a balanced diet—leaving millions malnourished and vulnerable.
Malnutrition continues to threaten their physical growth, cognitive development, and long-term potential.
Unicef data show that 28% of Bangladeshi children under five are stunted, while 10% suffer from wasting.
At the same time, a growing number of children are overweight or obese, putting them at risk of chronic health conditions later in life.
The causes are multifaceted: insufficient healthcare services, repeated infections, and limited access to protein-rich foods, vegetables, and fruits. Malnourished children often struggle with poor concentration, weak immunity, and reduced learning capacity—affecting their education and overall quality of life.
Who is most at risk?
Children born in urban slums, tea estates, poor rural households, and Rohingya refugee camps face the highest risk of malnutrition.
Those born to uneducated mothers are particularly vulnerable due to a lack of awareness about balanced diets and proper feeding practices.
Exclusive breastfeeding rates remain low. Only 47% of newborns are breastfed within the first hour of birth.
While 63% of infants under six months receive only breast milk, just 28% of children above six months are fed a sufficiently diverse diet.
Doctors’ perspective
Dr Luna Parveen, a junior consultant at Bangladesh Shishu Hospital and Institute, emphasizes that children’s diets must include grains, fruits like bananas and apples, vegetables, proteins, and dairy.
“The main reasons children lack nutrition are mothers’ lack of awareness and, in some cases, poverty,” she said.
She recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months, followed by the gradual introduction of eggs, vegetables, khichuri, and fruits.
By age one, children should be eating a full family diet. But modern challenges are adding new risks.
“We now see iron deficiency, vitamin D deficiency, worm infections, allergies, and fast-food addiction in many children,” Dr Parveen warned.
Other doctors at the institute echoed her concerns.
Dr Waker Ahmed Siam said he treats between 60 and 100 child patients daily, many of whom suffer from malnutrition.
Pediatrician Dr Kaikor Ghosh stressed the importance of breastfeeding frequency, advising one mother of a four-month-old underweight baby to feed every 90 minutes and avoid introducing other foods before six months.
“Poor feeding practices and lack of hygiene are among the top causes of illness we see,” Dr Ghosh told Dhaka Tribune.
Child and maternal health trends
Unicef notes that Bangladesh has made progress in child health. Between 1990 and 2019, the child mortality rate was halved.
However, the country still records 20 neonatal deaths, 25 infant deaths, and 31 under-five deaths per 1,000 live births.
Experts stress that maternal nutrition during pregnancy is key to breaking the cycle of malnutrition.
Expectant mothers must consume a balanced diet that includes fruits, vegetables, grains, proteins, dairy, oils, and essential micronutrients such as iron, calcium, iodine, choline, and vitamins A, C, D, B6, B12, and folic acid.
The World Health Organization (WHO) identifies severe malnutrition as one of the leading causes of illness and death among children under five globally—a warning that resonates deeply in Bangladesh’s current context.