Children are the future of any nation. A malnourished child is not only a problem of present-day society, but also an issue for the future. However, approximately one-third of the world’s children are malnourished. Malnourishment can be measured in terms of nutrition and weight. In general, people believe that a lack of money—that is, financial poverty—is the main reason for childhood malnutrition. Nevertheless, most studies addressing this topic report that socio-economic factors are the major cause of childhood malnutrition worldwide. This study analyses how some of these socio-economic factors affect childhood malnutrition and identifies the major steps taken by the authorities of different countries to eliminate these causes. A review of the literature shows that a mother’s knowledge of her children’s health, her education level, and her place of residence are some of the major factors impacting children’s nutrition level. A literature review shows that among all types of malnutrition measurements, stunting indicates the long-term impact of consistent malnutrition most effectively. The governments of several countries as well as international organisations are trying to overcome this problem through the implementation of various programs; however, more thorough intervention is required.

With child malnutrition detected as a persistent problem in most of the developing countries, public policy has been directed towards offering community-based supplementary feeding provision and nutritional information to caregivers. India, being no exception, has initiated these programs as early as 1970s under integrated child development scheme. Using propensity score matching technique on primary data of 390 households in two districts of West Bengal, an Eastern state in India, the study finds that impact of being included in the program and receiving supplementary feeding is insignificant on child stunting measures, though the program can break the intractable barriers of child stunting only when the child successfully receives not only just the supplementary feeding but also his caregiver collects crucial information on nutritional awareness and growth trajectory of the child. Availability of regular eggs in the feeding diet too can reduce protein-related undernutrition. Focusing on just feeding means low depth of other services offered under integrated child development scheme, including pre-school education, nutritional awareness, and hygiene behavior; thus repealing a part of the apparent food-secure population who puts far more importance on the latter services.

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