Risk factors for 6-to-24-month-old toddlers in district of Tanara: survey of hygiene sectors, worm infection, and complementary feeding to reduce stunting

Abstract

Background: Children in Indonesia still struggle against being stunted, wasted, and underweight. In 2018, 30.8 % of children under five years old were stunted, in 2022, it had decreased to 21.6%. The stunting rate in Pandeglang Regency in 2019 was 41.6%, whereas the incidence in Banten Province was 24.1%. This study aims to determine factors that influence the occurrence of stunting in children aged 6–24 months in Tanara District, Serang Regency, Indonesia. Methods: A cross-sectional approach was used on a sample consisting of 40 mothers with children aged 6–24 months in September 2020, selected using consecutive sampling from nine subdistricts. Results: Of the total respondents, 21 (52.5%) have stunted children aged 6–24 months, 28 (70%) children had completed exclusive breastfeeding, and 65% had poor knowledge of complementary feeding. Findings reveal a relationship between the incidence of stunting and the history of infectious disease, a lack of complementary feeding knowledge, and a lack of a healthy life attitude. Conclusions: The most influential factor in stunting in children aged 6–24 months was the history of infectious disease and the attitude toward a healthy life. A lower history of infectious disease in children under five will give a low incidence of stunting; conversely, a higher attitude toward healthy living lowers the incidence of stunting. In this study, the specific nutrition intervention programs required are learning classes for mothers, whether they are mothers of infants/toddlers or pregnant women. Moreover, the improvement of sensitive intervention programs for environmental hygiene needs to be encouraged, which is conducted by the local government and the community. The need to integrate nutrition-specific and sensitive interventions into efforts to improve children’s health should be met so that the handling of nutritional problems can be sustainable.