Stunted growth

Stunted growth
Other names	Stunting, nutritional stunting
World map in 2016: Share of children who are stunted
Specialty	Pediatrics

Stunted growth, also known as stunting or linear growth failure, is defined as impaired growth and development manifested by low height-for-age.^[1] It is a primary manifestation of malnutrition (or more precisely chronic under-nutrition) and recurrent infections, such as diarrhea and helminthiasis, in early childhood and even before birth, due to malnutrition during fetal development brought on by a malnourished mother. The definition of stunting according to the World Health Organization (WHO) is for the "height-for-age" value to be less than two standard deviations of the median of WHO Child Growth Standards.^[2] Stunted growth is usually associated with poverty, unsanitary environmental conditions, maternal under-nutrition, frequent illness, and/or inappropriate feeding practice and care during early years of life.

As of 2020^[update], an estimated 149 million children under 5 years of age are stunted worldwide.^[3] More than 85% of the world's stunted children live in Africa and Asia.^[4] Once established, stunting and its effects typically become permanent. Stunted children may never regain the height lost as a result of stunting, and most children will never gain the corresponding body weight. One notable contribution to stunted growth is lack of sanitation, leading to public defecation, such as in India.^[5]