“We dream that our son can be a great teacher,” shares the mother of 12-month-old Edwin.
Edwin is the youngest of five children. He lives with his family in a one-room cinderblock house in Guatemala. His favorite thing to do is to race his toy cars with his siblings. His mother works cooking, cleaning, and taking care of him and his siblings, as well as helping Edwin’s father maintain and harvest the small plot of land they rent where they grow beans and corn. His father works as a day laborer, harvesting crops on a large plantation.
Although Edwin’s parents want the best for their son, they do not have the resources to feed him even one vegetable, piece of fruit, or egg—the minimum that he needs to be able to overcome malnutrition.
Edwin’s mother has noticed that her son has almost no appetite. This is because Edwin has malnutrition, a condition that results from having a diet that lacks protein, calories, and nutrients. This has made him fail to reach normal growth and developmental indicators, and made his immune system too weak to fight off common illnesses such as coughs and diarrhea. If he does not receive treatment, Edwin could face the consequences of malnutrition for the rest of his life—he could have a low IQ, trouble focusing in school, and a greater risk of developing chronic diseases such as diabetes and hypertension as an adult.
All these consequences make it less likely he will have a well-paying job as an adult, meaning the cycle of poverty and malnutrition would continue if he decides to have kids.
Growth monitoring, micronutrient and food supplementation, and deworming medication will help Edwin recover from malnutrition. 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.
Edwin’s mother will receive the support she need to feel empowered to give Edwin the diet he needs to grow and develop healthily, even with limited resources. Intervention now will give Edwin the chance to live a healthy and productive life and escape the cycle of malnutrition and poverty that made him sick in the first place.