Peer-reviewed article
Nutritional Intervention Model (Probiotics and Prebiotics) to Address Stunting Problems in Toddlers
Waifti Amalia, Senditya Indah Mayasari ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001Stunting is a chronic nutritional problem that affects child growth and development. This study tested whether giving toddlers locally sourced foods containing probiotics and prebiotics for 14 days could help them grow. The study found that all 15 stunted toddlers in the intervention gained weight and height, with improvements in both body weight and height-for-age measures. The researchers concluded that this affordable, locally available approach could help prevent and treat stunting in communities.
Key points
- Mean body weight increased by 0.25 kg (p=0.001) over the 14-day intervention
- Height increased by 0.64 cm (p=0.001) over the same period
- Weight-for-age Z-score improved by 0.27 and height-for-age Z-score improved by 0.23
- All 15 participants demonstrated positive changes with no decreases observed
- The intervention used locally sourced foods, making it affordable and practical for community implementation
Limitations
The study involved only 15 toddlers with no comparison group, so it cannot establish whether the improvements were due to the probiotics and prebiotics specifically or other factors like general improved nutrition. The short 14-day intervention period limits understanding of whether benefits are sustained over longer timeframes.
Abstract
Stunting is a chronic nutritional problem that impairs child growth. Its main causes include inadequate dietary intake and recurrent gastrointestinal infections. Probiotic and prebiotic–based interventions are believed to improve gut function and enhance nutrient absorption. This study applied a pre–post test design involving 15 stunted toddlers. The intervention consisted of locally sourced foods containing probiotics and prebiotics, administered for 14 days. Data collection included body weight, height, and Z-scores, measured before and after the intervention. Data were analyzed using the Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test. The mean body weight increased by 0.25 kg (p=0.001), while height increased by 0.64 cm (p=0.001). The weight-for-age Z-score improved by 0.27, and the height-for-age Z-score improved by 0.23. All participants demonstrated positive changes, with no decrease observed. Locally sourced foods containing probiotics and prebiotics were proven effective in improving body weight and height among stunted toddlers. This approach offers a simple, affordable, and practical nutritional strategy for the prevention and management of stunting at the community level.
Findings the Hub has extracted
Each claim below is labelled by its type of design and links back to this report.
Problem
Stunting in toddlers caused by inadequate dietary intake and recurrent gastrointestinal infections
- Intervention
- Locally sourced foods containing probiotics and prebiotics administered for 14 days
- Population
- 15 stunted toddlers in Indonesia
Key finding
Mean body weight increased by 0.25 kg (p=0.001)