ASSESSMENT OF NUTRITIONAL STATUS OF SCHOOL CHILDREN IN RURAL AND URBAN AREAS OF BANKURA, WEST BENGAL

The health and nutritional status of school children is an index of national investment in the development of its future manpower. Malnutrition affects the child’s physical and cognitive growth and increases the susceptibility to infections while having an adverse impact on economic growth of the country indirectly. The objective of this study is to assess the nutritional status of rural and urban school going children (16 – 18 years) of Bankura district, West Bengal. A total of 80 school children [rural school children (Group 1; n = 40) and urban school children (Group 2; n = 40)] belonging to the age group of 16 to 18 years and the study were conducted from the month of September 2015 to February 2016. The important clinical signs like pallor, hair changes, eye changes, teeth changes, skeletal changes, goitre, skin changes and bones etc., were found significantly higher for Group 1. Mean height, weight and body mass index were significantly higher in the Group 2 school children compared to Group 1. The prevalence of underweight was significantly higher in Group 1 School children compared to Group 2 according to their BMI, WC and WHR. The overall prevalence of underweight was 65%. The present study highlights that the rural school going children of Bankura district belonging to the lower socioeconomic classes and are suffering from different grades of malnutrition than their counterparts. These high levels of malnutrition in the present study underline the great need for nutritional intervention.