Kadis Kesehatan Kaltara Claims Successfully Lowering Stunting Prevalence By 5.4 Percent

Illustration of stunting (Photo: Doc. Antara)

TANJUNG SELOR - The Provincial Government of North Kalimantan (North Kalimantan Provincial Government) succeeded in reducing the prevalence of stunting by 5.4 percent from 27.5 percent in 2021 to 22.1 percent in 2022 through additional food programs for infants and pregnant women.

"Alhamdulillah, we succeeded in reducing stunting on the program to increase public consumption patterns, especially the provision of additional food to infants and pregnant women," said Head of the Kaltara Health Service, Usman, quoted from Antara, Sunday, March 12.

For information, prevalence is the total number of diseases that occur at a certain time in an area.

stunting is a condition of failure to grow in children, namely body and brain growth due to malnutrition for a long time.

The North Kalimantan Health Office implemented an additional food supply program (PMT) to overcome the lack of chronic energy (KEK) in toddlers and pregnant women.

The concentration of stunting treatment will be carried out in villages/kelurahan in four districts, namely Malinau, Nunukan, Bulungan, and Tana Tidung.

Villages/kelurahan focus on stunting management, including covering all urban villages in Tanjung Selor, Long Bulu, Tujung, Tagul, Punan Bengalun, Bekayuk, Pelencau, Punan Rian, Long Pada, Long Nyau, Rian Tubu, Harapan Maju, Maritam, Sekatak Bengara, Tabur Lestari, Long Ranau, Salimbatu, and Pejalin.

Usman said that stunting must continue to be carried out with an approach to fulfilling nutrition. One of them is shopping for additional food packages for toddlers.

"The fulfillment of nutrition must be done. Don't let it get worse, new stunting cases will appear again," he said.

Fulfillment of nutrition is also important for pregnant women. This is to support the survival of the first 1,000 days of life or from the fetus to a 2 year old baby.

Stunting is caused by several things, including unhealthy environment, poverty, minimal access to clean water, to poor sanitation.

Usman emphasized that the problem of stunting is actually a shared task.

Infrastructure to the economic sector must continue to be grown so that people can get access to basic needs properly.

He added that stunting cases are more prone to occurring in rural areas considering basic access that is not easier to fulfill than urban areas.