Family Planning; A means to tackle Malnutrition in Nigeria

Malnutrition often starts with a pregnant woman lacking all the right nutrients and vitamins the fetus needs to grow. As the baby’s organs properly develop during the first five weeks of pregnancy, a mother needs to eat balanced diet for if the child becomes malnourished in the womb, the damage can be permanent. 

According to UNICEF 90,000 children could die in the coming year, amounting to almost 250 child deaths each day,  unless the international and local community takes swift action. 

"The world produces enough food to feed every man, woman and child on earth. Hunger and malnutrition therefore are not due to lack of food alone, but are also the consequences of poverty, inequality and misplaced priorities.” – UNICEF Deputy Executive Director, Kul C. Gautam.

Evidence has proven that Family planning can directly and indirectly affect the nutritional status of women,children and infants. 

• A good nutrition can improve the health of a pregnant woman and prevent avoidable ailments in mother and child.
• Family planning recommends child spacing; during pregnancy and while breastfeeding a woman could use up her nutritional reserves. A well spaced pregnancy allows a woman to gain back all she has lost in terms of nutrients and used up vitamins.  
• If a woman becomes pregnant too soon after giving birth chances are she will withdraw a breastfeeding child before his/her time in other to make way for a new baby. Leaving the older child malnourished
• With a well planned family, parents are able to feed the child/children they already have by providing the right meals in the right quantity needed for optimal growth.

An increased family planning services provision in Nigeria will reduce the projected malnutrition rate and reduce child deaths.

Let's plan our family so we can have enough to feed the family we have and therefore avoid malnutrition and child mortality.