Comparative Analysis of the Nutritional Status of Under - five Children and their Mothers in Rural and Urban Areas of Anambra State, Nigeria

Aim: Ma lnutrition in the form of under - nutrition is still a major public health problem in developing countries of sub - Saharan Africa including Nigeria. This study compares the nutritional status of under- fivechildren and their mothers in rural and urban areas o f Anambra State Nigeria. Methodology: This was a comparative cross - sectional study carried out in one urban and two rural local government areasof Anambra State, Nigeria namely Awka South, Dunukofia and Anaocha respectively. A total of 657 mother - child p airs were selected from eligible households using the multistage samplingtechnique. Data on household food security was obtained from the mothers using semi - structured, interviewer - administered questionnaires while anthropometric measurements were carried out on the children and their mothers using weighing scales and height boards. Results: The overall prevalence of stunting, wasting and underweightamong the under- fivechildren in this study were 15.1%, 18.1% and 10.4% respectively, and the proportions were higher in the rural area than in the urban. The prevalence of stunting (height < 152 cm) in the mothers was 7.9% in the rural area compared to 9.1% in the urban area. Majority of the women were overweight (BMI ≥ 25.0), more in the urban (69.3%) than i n the rural (59.2%).