Stunting is still a nutritional problem in Indonesia, and it can be defined as a delay in growth in children compared to their age. In 2018, the stunting rate in Central Sulawesi reached 30.8% and still far from the standard percentage rate set by the World Health Organization (WHO), which is 20%. Non-exclusive breastfeeding, low economic status, premature birth, low maternal condition, and low education level are believed to be the determining factors for the incidence of stunting in children. Moreover, stunting is a permanent condition and can affect physical capacity in children.
The highest prevalence of stunting occurred in children aged two years (50%) and decreased at ten years (29%). Stunting has an impact on learning achievement in primary school children. Research conducted in East Nusa Tenggara proved that stunted students experienced delayed learning achievement. Nutritional status in students is often associated with learning achievement in children. Given the importance of the problem of stunting at ten years of age and the lack of research related to variations in height in children aged ten years, this study was conducted to determine the prevalence of stunting in children aged ten years based on regional differences in Central Sulawesi Province.
The research used a quantitative descriptive research design that focused on elementary school children in 4 districts in Central Sulawesi Province. There were 392 respondents aged ten years who were used in this study. The results of this study indicate the incidence of stunting in children aged ten years in Central Sulawesi by 24.7%. The highest figure was found in Poso Regency, namely 35.9% and followed by Donggala (35.7%), Sigi (16.5), and Palu (12.5) Regencies, respectively. Apart from that, this study also proves that there are differences in z-scores, namely -0.72 (Palu), -1.63 (Donggala), -1.45 (Poso), and -1.09 (Sigi). The difference is related to the condition of Palu City, which is located in urban areas, in terms of income, education, immunization status, and other factors that are better than other areas.
Nutritional interventions are critical in the management of stunting, including improving nutrition in mothers during pregnancy and the postpartum period, as well as control and prevention of infections before and after delivery. It is necessary to establish stunting prevention measures, especially in the first 1000 days of life. Special attention needs to be given to children from birth to the age of 10, such as encouraging the habit of eating fish by the provincial governments of South Sumatra and Central Sulawesi through increased consumption of trout and fish. Apart from that, a multi-stakeholder role is also needed between the local, district, provincial and central governments to reduce the incidence of stunting in people in Central Sulawesi.
Authors: Taqwin, T., Ramadhan, K., Hadriani, H., Nasrul, N., Hafid, F., & Efendi, F
Linkt: http://www.jgpt.co.in/index.php/jgpt/article/view/3375 Taqwin, T., Ramadhan, K., Hadriani, H., Nasrul, N., Hafid, F., & Efendi, F. (2020). Prevalence of stunting among 10-year old children in Indonesia. Journal of Global Pharma Technology, 12 (2), 768–775.
