UN reports over 300% increase in malnutrition cases among children in Gaza
After twenty weeks of conflict and continued destruction, food and clean water are incredibly scarce in the Gaza Strip, and diseases are spreading, compromising the nutrition and immunity of women and children and leading to a sharp rise in acute malnutrition. The warning comes after a report released today by the UNICEF-led Global Nutrition Cluster showed that one in six children under the age of two is acutely malnourished in northern Gaza, where aid has been almost completely cut off for weeks.
The report noted that even in Rafah, where aid was more available, five percent of children in the same age group were suffering the same. UNICEF pointed out that the data in the report was collected in January, and the situation is likely to be even more dire now.
Explosion in child deaths:
“Gaza is on the verge of an explosion in preventable child deaths, which will double the already unbearable level of child mortality,” said Ted Chaiban, UNICEF Deputy Executive Director and recalled that UNICEF warned that the Strip was “on the brink of a nutrition crisis.” He warned that if the conflict does not end now, “child nutrition will continue to deteriorate, leading to preventable deaths or health problems that will affect Gaza’s children for life and have potential consequences across generations.”
One hundred percent of families limit their meals and portion sizes, and 64 percent eat only one meal daily. In addition, more than 95 percent of families reported restricting the amount of food adults receive to ensure young children have food to eat.
The sharp rise in malnutrition rates in Gaza is “dangerous and entirely preventable,” said Valerie Guarnieri, WFP’s assistant executive director. She stressed the need for decisive improvements in security and humanitarian access, increased crossings for aid to enter Gaza, and ensuring that women and children have access to healthy food, clean water, and health and nutrition services.
Hunger and disease are a deadly combination:
It has been reported that at least 90 percent of children under five in Gaza are suffering from infectious diseases, and 70 percent have had diarrhea in the past two weeks, a 23-fold increase compared to 2022. “Hungry, weak, and traumatized children are more vulnerable to disease, and sick children, especially those with diarrhea, cannot absorb nutrients well. It is serious, tragic, and happening right before our eyes.”
UNICEF, WFP, and WHO called for safe, unhindered, and sustained access to deliver multi-sectoral humanitarian assistance across the Gaza Strip. They stressed the need to protect hospitals and health workers from attacks to provide critical treatment and care safely. They also noted that an immediate humanitarian ceasefire still offers the best chance to save lives and end the suffering.
