Peer-reviewed article
Family Empowerment through Psychosocial Stimulation Assistance and Child Feeding in Increasing Nutrition Intake and Body Weight of Children 2-3 Years Old to Prevent Stunting
Sukmawati Sukmawati, Fatmawati Suaib ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study tested whether training families on psychosocial stimulation and child feeding practices could improve nutrition and prevent stunting in young children in Indonesia. Stunting is common in South Sulawesi, affecting child development and future health. The intervention included family empowerment activities combined with improved feeding guidance for children aged 2-3 years. Children in the treatment group gained more weight and consumed more of key nutrients like protein, calcium, zinc and vitamin A compared to a control group.
Key points
- Treatment group children gained 0.35 kg in body weight compared to 0.08 kg in the control group
- Nutrient intake increased across carbohydrates, protein, fat, calcium, zinc, and vitamin A in the treatment group more than the control group
- South Sulawesi had the fourth highest stunting prevalence in Indonesia at 40.9% as of 2013, rising from 29.2% in 2007
- The intervention combined psychosocial stimulation assistance with child feeding education for families
- Study recommends puskesmas (health center) officers and community health cadres provide more mother support on stimulation and feeding
Limitations
The study used a small sample of 30 children at a single health center, which limits generalisability to other settings in Indonesia or elsewhere. The document does not specify the duration of the intervention, the specific content of psychosocial stimulation provided, or long-term follow-up outcomes beyond the study period.
Abstract
Background: The prevalence of stunting in Indonesia still high based on Basic Health Research 2018 withprevalence 30.8%. The percentage of children under five with stunting in South Sulawesi more increasing,from the results ofBasic Health Research in 2007, 2010, and 2013, respectively 29.2%, 39.8%, and 40.9%.In 2018, the position of South Sulawesi on the fourth highest prevalence of stunting from all provinces inIndonesia. The extent andheight number of children under five with stunting in South Sulawesi have a verybig impact on the quality of human resources in the future(1)(2).Objective: The aims of this study to analyze the effect of family empowerment through psychosocialstimulation assistance and child feeding on nutritional intake and body weight of children aged 2-3 years toprevent stunting.Methods: The research design and type wasquasi-experimentalwith the Pre-Post Test Control Group Design.The sample of this research is 30 children under five aged 2-3 yearsat PaccerakangHealth Center, MakassarCity. The analysis data using Paired T-Test.Results: There was an increaseintake of carbohydrates, protein, fat, calcium, zinc, and vitamin A, whichwas higher in the treatment group than in the control group. There was an increase in body weight in thetreatment group which was higher at 0.35 kg while in the control group it was only 0.08 kg.Conclusion: Family empowerment through psychosocial stimulation assistance and child feeding has asignificant effect on increasing nutrient intake (carbohydrates, protein, fat, calcium, zinc, and vitamin A) andbody weight of children aged 2-3 years. It is hoped that puskesmas officers and posyandu cadres will providemore assistance to mothers of toddlers on psychosocial stimulation and child feeding.
Findings the Hub has extracted
Each claim below is labelled by its type of design and links back to this report.
- Intervention
- Family empowerment through psychosocial stimulation assistance and child feeding education
- Population
- Children aged 2-3 years at PaccerakangHealth Center, Makassar City, South Sulawesi, Indonesia (n=30)
Key finding
Treatment group body weight increase was 0.35 kg versus 0.08 kg in control group