Impact of Mid Day Meal Program on the Nutritional Status of Rural School Children: A Comparative Study with or without NGO Intervention

Abstract

Mid Day Meal Program (MDMP) has recently seen an increased involvement by non‐governmental organizations (NGO) but its effectiveness on nutritional outcomes has not been evaluated. The objective of the study was to perform a comparative assessment of MDMP with or without NGO intervention on the growth and hemoglobin status of school children (5–14 years) in rural Gujarat. Five schools, serving mid day meal (MDM) by an NGO were compared to one school which was served MDM directly by the Government (non‐NGO). A total of 1088 children from Gandhinagar district (NGO area) and 282 children in Dehgam district (non‐NGO area) participated in the study. Weight and height were measured using standard procedures. Hemoglobin was measured on a sub sample of 168 children. After 4 months of MDMP intervention children in NGO area had a greater increase in body weight (1.19kg vs 590 g, P<0.001), BMI (0.43 kg/m2vs 0.09 kg/m2, P<0.001) and a greater reduction in prevalence of anemia (16.9% vs 1%, P<0.01). There was a significant rise of 4% in the prevalence of stunting (Height for age <−2SD) in non‐NGO area using CDC 2000 criteria (p<0.01). On the other hand NGO area had a 9% reduction in prevalence of thinness (BMI for age <−2SD) using CDC 2000 criteria (P<0.01). Our data show that NGO executed MDMP have better nutritional outcomes in school going children than MDMP executed by the Government.Grant Funding Source: MS University of Baroda, Gujarat, India