Abstract:

Background: Under Nutrition Is One of World’s Most Serious but Least Addressed Health Problems. Malnutrition Is Widespread In Cameroon Especially In The Northern Regions Of Cameroon. There Are Currently Very Little Or No Data On Factors Associated With Stunting In Cameroon. This Paper Presents Some Factors Associated With Stunting In Adamaoua, East, Far North And North Regions Of Cameroon.

Method: This Study Analysed Dataset Of The Firth Round Of Cameroon Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS5) To Establish Risk Factors Associated With Stunting In Four Regions Of Cameroon

Results: 3085 Cases were Analysed, with stunting Prevalence Rates Of 31.7% At National Level, 37.8%, 35.8% , 41.9% And 33.8% Respectively In Adamaoua, East, Far North And North Regions. The Highest Risk of Stunting Was Among Children Age 36-45 Months (10.2%, 8.8%, 11.9%, And 10.4% Respectively In the Adamaoua, East, Far North and North Regions). Rural Children across All Four Regions Were More Affected By Stunting (22%, 27%, 31.9%, And 27.4% Respectively In Adamaoua, East, Far North and North Regions than Their Urban Counterparts (13, 9%, 8%, 8%, And 6.5% Respectively).

Conclusion: The Study Recorded High Prevalence Of Stunting, Underweight And Wasting Among Children Age 6-59 Months. Malnutrition was noted as a Burden in Children Age 6-59 Months in Cameroon, Particularly the Four Regions of the Study. Age And Place Of Residence Of Child, Were Found To Be Significantly Associated With Stunting And That Child Age Was Significantly Associated With Minimum Acceptable Diet.

Keywords: Cameroon, Under-Nutrition, Stunting, Determinants, Association.

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