Background: This study seeks to provide a comprehensive review of existing literature on the application of mobile health (mHealth) technologies in efforts to prevent, monitor, and reduce the prevalence of childhood stunting. Additionally, it aims to explore the key challenges associated with implementing these digital health interventions. Methods: The literature review was carried out by systematically searching six major databases—PubMed, ScienceDirect, Wiley, SAGE, ProQuest, and Google Scholar—for relevant articles published between February 2015 and February 2025. The inclusion criteria encompassed original, English-language studies that employed either quantitative or qualitative methodologies, focusing on digital applications for the prevention, monitoring, or management of childhood stunting. Only freely accessible full-text articles were considered. Studies that relied solely on traditional, non-digital approaches were excluded. The article selection process adhered to the PRISMA flow diagram, and the methodological quality of the included studies was assessed using the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) critical appraisal tool. From an initial pool of 5,797 articles, a structured screening process was conducted using the Rayyan AI platform, culminating in the selection of seven studies for in-depth analysis. Results: Thematic analysis identified five central themes: (1) improvements in knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP); (2) enhanced growth monitoring and early detection of stunting; (3) the vital role of community support and health cadres; (4) the overall effectiveness of mHealth interventions; and (5) implementation challenges within vulnerable populations. The findings highlight the substantial potential of mHealth applications in preventing childhood stunting, particularly in resource-constrained settings. Notably, applications such as SCATION and Nutritional Rangers have demonstrated effectiveness in enhancing KAP and improving children’s nutritional outcomes. Conclusion: Integrating mHealth into maternal and child health programs at the community level is essential. Furthermore, supportive policy frameworks and additional research are necessary to overcome existing barriers to implementation.
Abstract Stunting (length‐for‐age z score < −2) before 2 years of age has shown associations with poor child developmental indicators, but information at the population level is scarce in South Asia, the region with the highest burden of stunting. We examined associations between z scores (i.e., height for age [HAZ], weight for age [WAZ], and weight for height [WHZ]) and undernutrition (i.e., stunting [HAZ < −2], wasting [WHZ < −2], and underweight [WAZ < −2]) with learning/cognition and social–emotional development among children 36–59 months of age. Data from Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys in Bangladesh ( n = 8,659), Bhutan ( n = 2,038), Nepal ( n = 2,253), and Pakistan (Punjab n = 11,369 and Sindh n = 6,718) were used. Children were considered developmentally “on‐track” in learning/cognition or social–emotional domains if they met specific early child development criteria. Meta‐analysis was conducted to examine regional associations, adjusting for socio‐economic status, early childhood education, and quality of care. In a pooled sample, on‐track learning/cognition development was positively associated with HAZ ( OR = 1.17, 95% CI [1.07, 1.27]) and WAZ ( OR = 1.18, 95% CI [1.07, 1.31]) and negatively associated with stunting ( OR = 0.72, 95% CI [0.60, 0.86]) and underweight ( OR = 0.75, 95% CI [0.66, 0.86]) but not associated with WHZ or wasting. On‐track development of social–emotional domain was not associated with any z scores or undernutrition indicators. Across several countries of South Asia, stunted children were less likely to be developmentally “on track” for learning/cognition. It is likely that interventions that prevent stunting may benefit child development, leading to significant individual and societal gains given the large burden of child stunting in regions like South Asia.
Yunhee Kang, Víctor M. Aguayo, Rebecca K. Campbell et al.
IntroductionEver since the 1960s, Guatemala has been a principle site for global academic research on child growth and nutrition. Nevertheless, Guatemala still has one of the highest rates of child stunting in the world. Since 2012, Guatemala has had a comprehensive national policy on stunting, calling for a renewed investment in innovative, multilevel nutrition interventions and implementation science. Our objective was to perform a systematic search and scoping review of the literature on stunting in Guatemala to identify gaps in research and opportunities for responding to this unique policy opportunity.MethodsWe conducted a systematic search and scoping review on stunting in Guatemala, searching the PubMed, Web of Science and PsycINFO databases. Eligible articles were of any design or format, published in English and Spanish from 2000 to 2018. Articles were thematically grouped by those published before (2000–2011) and after (2012–2018) the new national policy initiatives.ResultsWe identified a total of 1934 articles through database searches. After full-text review, 104 were included in the synthesis. The volume of published articles on stunting increased from a mean of 3.2 to 9.4 articles/year before and after 2012. There was a shift toward articles generating new data on priority populations, including rural indigenous Maya populations (34% vs 61%, χ2 test, p=0.01). However, the proportion of studies conducting implementation evaluations or testing new interventions was low and did not change significantly (34% vs 18%, χ2 test, p=0.07). Among 17 identified intervention studies, only 4 tested multilevel interventions, and there were no published interventions incorporating nutrition-sensitive interventions.ConclusionsA systematic search and scoping review of the literature on child stunting in Guatemala identified critical opportunities for new research in multilevel interventions, nutrition-sensitive interventions and implementation science.
Ana Cordon, Gabriela Asturias, Thomas De Vries et al.
A cross-sectional descriptive design study was conducted in the pediatric hospital in Al-Hasahisa-Algazera state -Sudan, to ascertain the prevalence of stunting in children under five years old. There are 100 patients in the samples (46 girls and 54 males). The questionnaire used to collect the study's primary data includes questions about participant content, sociodemographics, housing status, health, and nutrition. To estimate the patient's percentage of stunting, anthropometric measures, including height/length for age and mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC), were also obtained. The data showed that most of the children were raised in nuclear homes. A significant correlation (P value <0.05) was seen between stunting and mother education. The parents' educational attainment showed that a sizable percentage of fathers (52%) and mothers (45%) were illiterate. According to the findings, 82% of mothers were housewives, and 75% of fathers were employed. This finding demonstrated a significant (P value 0.004) relationship between income level and stunting, with weak income (22%), moderate-income (78%), and no income level. Furthermore, 36% of completed breastfeeders and 37% of non-completers showed a highly significant (P value 0.003) correlation between breastfeeding and stunting. During the course of the study, diarrheal diseases affected 68% of the children, while anemia (27%), malaria (52%), parasitic infections (17%), and chest infections (69%)were the most common conditions. 39% of the kids had severe malnutrition, and 18% had moderate malnutrition. The bulk of them, 78%, were stunted, with the remaining 19% mild, 11% moderate, and 48% severely stunted. According to the report, 35% of stunted children were female, and 43% of stunted children were male.
Background: The ability to access food according to needs is influenced by educational and knowledge factors, socio-cultural, geography, and economic factors. Overcoming stunting not only overcomes the problem of malnutrition but also must pay attention to the problem of affordability or access to nutritious food Objectives: To analyze access to nutritious food in the prevention system stunting in Lumajang Regency Methods: Qualitative research through a Case Study approach conducted in two villages in Lumajang Regency. The research informants consisted of key informants namely the Head of the Puskesmas, the main informants were mother with toddler Stunting and additional informants namely stakeholders related to stunting. Data processing and analysis using the Thematic Content Analysis method. Results: Access to nutritious food that is less than optimal is caused by economic factors that are lacking, lack of knowledge of mothers of toddlers, malnutrition in toddlers, children's eating arrangements are not meeting nutritional adequacy, children's consumption in a day is lacking, families do not take action to overcome children's nutritional problems and poor sanitation and environmental health Conclusions: Stunting in Lumajang Regency is the cause of which is access to nutritious food that is less than optimal so that it requires attention and cooperation from all parties to overcome it. The provision of education in the form of counseling needs to be carried out with multimethods and multi-media as well as integrated countermeasurements from all existing resources will accelerate the reduction of stunting cases in Lumajang Regency.
Child stunting in the Philippines remains a pressing health and education crisis, undermining children’s growth, learning capacity, and future productivity. Despite constitutional guarantees and laws such as the Kalusugan at Nutrisyon ng Mag Nanay Act, the Masustansyang Pagkain para sa Batang Pilipino Act, and the Early Childhood Care and Development Act, weak implementation has left millions of children vulnerable. Recent jurisprudence, including the consolidated cases of Pimentel III, Colmenares, and 1SAMBAYAN (2025), affirms that the right to health entails enforceable state obligations, situating stunting as a constitutional violation. Empirical evidence highlights maternal health and socio economic disparities as key drivers of malnutrition, while learning poverty remains alarmingly high. This paper argues that eradicating stunting requires decisive national action, stronger accountability, and sustained investment in maternal and child health programs to secure the country’s human capital.
AbstractChildhood stunting remains a public health burden worldwide. Although many studies have examined early life and in‐utero risk factors; most have been observational and have used analytic techniques that make inferences limited to population means, thereby obscuring important within‐group variations. This study addressed that important gap. Using data from a birth cohort of Ugandan infants (n = 4528), we applied group‐based trajectory modelling to assess diverse patterns of growth among children from birth to 1‐year old. A multinomial regression model was conducted to understand the relationship between risk factors and observed patterns across groups. We found that the onset of stunting occurred before birth and followed four distinct growth patterns: chronically stunted (Group 1), recovery (Group 2), borderline stunted (Group 3) and normal (Group 4). The average length‐for‐age z‐score (LAZ) at birth was −2.6, −3.9, −0.6 and 0.5 for Groups 1–4, respectively. Although both Groups 1 and 2 were stunted at birth, stunting persisted in Group 1 while children in Group 2 recovered by the fourth month. Group 3 exhibited mild stunting while Group 4 was normal. Wasting and underweight were observed in all groups, with the highest prevalence of underweight in Group 1. Wasting gradually increased among children born already stunted (Groups 1 and 2). This showed the importance of distinguishing children by their growth patterns rather than aggregating them and only comparing population averages against global growth standards. The design of nutrition interventions should consider the differential factors and potential for growth gains relative to different risks within each group.
Grace Namirembe, Shibani Ghosh, Lynne M. Ausman et al.
AbstractIndia accounts for approximately one third of the world's total population of stunted preschoolers. Addressing global undernutrition, therefore, requires an understanding of the determinants of stunting across India's diverse states and districts. We created a district‐level aggregate data set from the recently released 2015–2016 National and Family Health Survey, which covered 601,509 households in 640 districts. We used mapping and descriptive analyses to understand spatial differences in distribution of stunting. We then used population‐weighted regressions to identify stunting determinants and regression‐based decompositions to explain differences between high‐ and low‐stunting districts across India. Stunting prevalence is high (38.4%) and varies considerably across districts (range: 12.4% to 65.1%), with 239 of the 640 districts have stunting levels above 40% and 202 have prevalence of 30–40%. High‐stunting districts are heavily clustered in the north and centre of the country. Differences in stunting prevalence between low and high burden districts were explained by differences in women's low body mass index (19% of the difference), education (12%), children's adequate diet (9%), assets (7%), open defecation (7%), age at marriage (7%), antenatal care (6%), and household size (5%). The decomposition models explained 71% of the observed difference in stunting prevalence. Our findings emphasize the variability in stunting across India, reinforce the multifactorial determinants of stunting, and highlight that interdistrict differences in stunting are strongly explained by a multitude of economic, health, hygiene, and demographic factors. A nationwide focus for stunting prevention is required, while addressing critical determinants district‐by‐district to reduce inequalities and prevalence of childhood stunting.
AbstractHousehold food and water insecurity has been previously associated with adverse health consequences in children. However, these relationships are understudied in middle‐income Latin American populations such as in Ecuador, where a high prevalence of food and water insecurity has been reported. Using cross‐sectional data from 2018 Ecuadorian National Health and Nutrition Survey, we examined the association of household food insecurity (HFI), household water insecurity (HWI), and concurrent HFI‐HWI with diarrhoea, respiratory illness (RI), and stunting in 20,510 children aged ≤59 months. HFI was measured using the Food Insecurity Experience Scale. HWI was defined when households responded negatively to one or more of four drinking water indicators. Maternal caregivers reported on child diarrhoea and RI episodes during the previous 2 weeks. Measured length or height was used to assess stunting. We constructed log‐binomial regression models to estimate the associations of HFI, HWI, and concurrent HFI‐HWI with child outcomes. Moderate‐severe HFI was associated with a higher prevalence of diarrhoea (PR = 1.39; 95% CI: 1.18, 1.63) and RI (PR = 1.34; 95% CI: 1.22, 1.47), HWI with a higher prevalence of RI (PR = 1.13; 95% CI: 1.04, 1.22), and concurrent HFI‐HWI with a higher prevalence of diarrhoea (PR = 1.30; 95% CI: 1.05, 1.62) and RI (PR = 1.45; 95% CI: 1.29, 1.62). Stunting was not associated with HFI, HWI nor concurrent HFI‐HWI. These findings suggest that HFI and HWI can independently and jointly act to negatively affect children's health. Policies and interventions aimed at alleviating both food and water insecurity are needed to bring sustained health improvements in Ecuadorian children.
Rishika Chakraborty, Rodrigo X. Armijos, Erika T. Beidelman et al.
ABSTRACT One of the major sources of public health concern in many developing countries is child stunting, which accounts for more than a third of all deaths of children below the age of 5 years worldwide. Although child stunting generally seems to be on a downward trend in the country, the present prevalence is still very high based on international standards. Several studies have established that the extent of early childhood dietary exposure to aflatoxins (AFs) and fumonisins (FBs) in the country occurs through complementary feeding. However, there is a paucity of information on whether this is linked to child stunting. This review discusses child stunting and nutrition and strives to draw a link between early childhood dietary exposure to AFs and FBs and child stunting in Tanzania. The review further outlines the mechanisms of mycotoxin‐induced growth impairment and deliberates on the past, present, and future interventions that can be useful in alleviating the problem of stunting that is linked to these mycotoxins. Such information can be crucial for developing and adopting appropriate interventions that can contribute to the further reduction of child stunting in Tanzania.
