Definitions: A person has undernutrition if his or her diet does not contain sufficient protein and calories for growth or maintenance, or if he or she is not able to absorb sufficient protein and calories because of ill health. Undernutrition manifests as low weight for age (underweight), low weight for height (wasted), or low height for age (stunted). The prevalence of stunting is a good measure of chronic undernutrition. A person has overnutrition if his or her diet supplies more calories and protein than he or she requires, leading to unhealthy weight gain. The term malnutrition encompasses both undernutrition and overnutrition.
Trends: Among children under the age of 5 in developing countries, an estimated 129 million are underweight and 195 million are stunted: more than 90% of the developing world’s stunted children live in Africa and Asia. An even larger number of children suffer the effects of undernutrition in the womb and micronutrient deficiencies. One indicator of progress toward achieving Millennium Development Goal 1, the eradication of poverty and extreme hunger, is the proportion of children aged under 5 who are underweight. Progress toward this goal has been limited in Africa, with 28% of children under 5 years old being underweight around 1990, compared with 25% around 2008. Progress has been slightly better in Asia, with 37% underweight prevalence around 1990 and 31% around 2008.
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