Peer-reviewed article
NUTRITION EDUCATION AS BENEFICIAL COMPLIMENT ON CHILDREN’S NUTRITION INTERVENTION: A NARRATIVE REVIEW
Saskia Piscesa, Al Ilham Ksatria Gagah Perkasa, Niken Salsabyla ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-sonnet-5-5This narrative review looks at whether adding nutrition education to child nutrition programmes, such as food supplementation, complementary feeding and community programmes, makes them work better. It searched four databases for English-language studies from 2014 to 2026 and also drew on reports from international organisations. The authors conclude that programmes combining education with nutrition support improved child growth and nutrition more than programmes that only provided food or nutrients. The review is set against the continuing problems of stunting, wasting and growth faltering in Indonesia.
Key points
- Most nutrition programmes focus on providing food or nutrients and give less attention to caregiver behaviour and adherence.
- Nutrition education improved caregivers' knowledge, infant and young child feeding practices, and dietary diversity.
- Education also improved adherence to intervention programmes and health-seeking behaviours.
- Interventions combining education with nutrition support showed more favourable child growth and nutrition outcomes than those providing nutrients alone.
- The educational components were linked to more sustainable changes in health and nutrition behaviours.
Limitations
The abstract does not report how many studies were included, their designs, effect sizes or the countries they covered. A narrative review does not give a systematic or quantitative estimate of impact, and the Indonesian focus is stated only in the introduction.
Abstract
Introduction: Malnutrition remains a significant public health concern, particularly in low- and middle-income countries where children are disproportionately affected. In Indonesia, although various nutrition-specific and nutrition-sensitive interventions have been implemented, stunting, wasting, and growth faltering continue to pose major challenges. Most nutrition programs emphasize food or nutrient provision, yet the behavioural factors influencing feeding practices and intervention adherence often receive less attention. Nutritional education has increasingly been recognized as an important strategy to complement these interventions. This narrative review aims to examine the current evidence on the role of nutritional education in improving the effectiveness of nutrition interventions. Methods: A narrative literature review was conducted by searching PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, and ScienceDirect for English-language publications from 2014 to 2026. The review included studies that integrated nutritional education with nutrition interventions, such as food supplementation, complementary feeding, and community-based nutrition programs. Relevant reports from international organizations were also included to provide broader context. Results: The available evidence suggests that nutritional education strengthens the impact of nutrition interventions by improving caregivers' knowledge, infant and young child feeding practices, dietary diversity, adherence to intervention programs, and health-seeking behaviors. Overall, interventions that combined nutritional education with nutrition support showed more favorable improvements in child growth and nutritional outcomes than those focusing solely on nutrient provision. In addition, educational components contributed to more sustainable changes in health and nutrition behaviors. Conclusion: Nutritional education is a valuable complement to nutrition interventions because it addresses the behavioral and knowledge-related factors that influence nutritional outcomes. Integrating evidence-based educational approaches into nutrition programs has the potential to improve program effectiveness and contribute to more sustainable reductions in childhood malnutrition.