The impacts of the COVID-19 crisis on maternal and child malnutrition in Myanmar: What to expect, and how to protect

Abstract

The COVID-19 crisis has severely disrupted economic activities in Myanmar. A sharp reduction in economic growth and large increases in poverty and food insecurity are anticipated. We explore the associated risks the crisis poses for maternal and child malnutrition and identify actions to mitigate adverse nutritional impacts. Prior to COVID-19, many mothers and children in Myanmar were nutritionally vulnerable. Among children under five years of age, 58 percent were anemic, 29 percent were stunted, and 7 percent were wasted. Twelve percent of women were underweight, but with large variations across regions. On the supply side, access to nutrition services were limited. Dietary practices are poor with just 22 percent of children aged 6 to 23 months consuming adequately diverse diets. A multi-country analysis of Demographic Health Surveys in 52 countries models how declines in economic growth contribute to increases in child wasting. This model predicts that the projected 8.6 percentage-point drop in the rate of national income growth in Myanmar in 2020 may lead to over 110,000 extra underfives becoming wasted. These children will be at increased risk of not surviving to their fifth birthday. Declining incomes due to the COVID-19 crisis, as well as disruptions to Myanmar's food systems, could reduce caloric intake for the most vulnerable. But the main impact is likely to be a significant reduction in dietary diversity. This partially explains the increased risk of wasting, stunting, and micronutrient deficiencies, such as anemia. Health surveillance data suggests that the COVID-19 lockdown from April 2020 onwards resulted in major disruptions to government maternal and child health services, with vaccinations rates almost falling to zero. There are also significant concerns that fear of mother-to-child transmission of COVID-19 could lead to early cessation of breastfeeding, which poses significant health risks for infants.

Change in nutritional status of urban slum children before and after the first COVID-19 wave in Bangladesh: A repeated cross-sectional assessment

“…PPRC's survey similarly reported 17% lower food expenditure in slums one year into COVID-19, and a majority of slum households forgoing proteins in their weekly diets [45]. Our finding on reduced child dietary diversity also supports COVID-19 impact predictions for other countries [55,56]. Lower dietary diversity is generally associated with a rise in food insecurity [54], but also as households may choose to consume more staples in lieu of fresh or faster-perishable food items in the pandemic's context [17,48].…”

Impact of Fear of COVID-19 Pandemic on Job Insecurity and Subjective Well-Being

“…Besides severe threats to lives and physical health, people face psychological disorders such as anxiety, depression, and panic disorder. 4 - 9 …”

Differences in the early impact of COVID-19 on food security and livelihoods in rural and urban areas in the Asia Pacific Region

“…The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) suggests that “ even fairly short lockdown measures, combined with severe mobility disruptions and moderate food systems disruptions ” could lead to an average 7.9% decrease in gross national income per capita relative to pre-COVID-19 projections in most low- and middle-income countries ( Laborde et al, 2020 ). Current microeconomic models by Headey et al project that economic loss driven by COVID-19 may be associated with a 14.3% increase in the prevalence of moderate and severe wasting among children under-five years of age in 118 LMICs, or 6.7 million children ( Headey et al, 2020a ).…”