Gustavo is a nine-month-old baby boy from Guatemala who has five siblings, all under the age of 8. He and his family live in a humble one-room house with a tin roof. His father works as a day laborer, where he makes $6 per day, but only when there is work. This is nowhere near enough to support even basic foods for the entire family, leaving Gustavo’s parents feeling helpless.
Gustavo is acutely malnourished because his mother has not been able to produce enough breastmilk to feed Gustavo and his twin sister, Reyna. This has made him unable to grow and he is only the size of a healthy two-month-old. If he does not receive a calorie and protein-rich nutritional therapy, he could face permanent neurodevelopmental stunting, and an increased risk of chronic diseases as an adult.
Growth monitoring, micronutrient and food supplementation, and deworming medication will help Gustavo recover from malnutrition. For $512, he will undergo the treatment he needs. He will gain weight and grow taller to catch up with other children his age. His immune system will grow stronger with the increased caloric intake. This will further increase his appetite and help him use the extra calories to gain motor skills and learn new words instead of those calories being wasted on getting over frequent illnesses. His mother will receive the support she needs to feel empowered to give Gustavo the diet he needs to grow and develop healthily, even with limited resources. Intervention now will give Gustavo the chance to live a healthy and productive life.