Tribal lactating mothers manifest more under nutrition in rural areas of Paschim Medinipur district of India

Abstract

The lactation period is one of the most vital periods of a women’s life and is a major source of concern in developing countries for its positive effect on the health and nutrition of children. Adequate nutrition during lactation is much more important for the good health of both the mothers and their offspring. But there is a little information about the nutritional status of the lactating mothers particularly among the tribal group. In this scenario, the present study was carried out to assess the nutritional status among lactating mothers belong to Santhal and non-tribal communities living in rural areas of Paschim Medinipur District. Nutritional status was evaluated from the body mass index (BMI), which was determined from the weight and height of each of the lactating mothers. The BMI of the Santhal lactating mothers (19.27±3.02 kg/m2) was significantly lower (t=2.353; P<0.05) than the non-tribal lactating mothers (20.54±4.16 kg/m2) while the prevalence of undernutrition was significantly (χ 2=5.999; P<0.05) lower than the non-tribal population (39.29%) than the tribal population (50.00%). An intervention programs such as nutrition education may be emphasized during antenatal and lactation period to improve better health and nutrition outcomes.