Meet Olivia, a 15-month-old girl from Guatemala who has recently been diagnosed with acute malnutrition.
“Olivia’s height and weight are over two standard deviations below normal, meaning she is not getting the food she needs to grow,” our medical partner, Wuqu Kawoq’ (WK), reports. “Her immune system has also been weakened by her poor diet.”
Acute malnutrition is characterized by the lack of proper nutrients, proteins, and calories needed to grow. It weakens the immune system and often causes diarrhea, coughs, and fevers. If not treated, Olivia will have an increased risk of developing chronic disease later in life and could experience developmental delays.
“Treating her now will have a large impact,” WK details. “She will likely be able to reach developmental milestones just like healthy kids her age, setting her up for a successful life instead of one filled with malnutrition and poverty.” Olivia’s father works as a farmer, and is unable to afford the treatment that his daughter needs because of the volatile seasonality of his income.
The treatment will cost $512 and will allow Olivia to receive growth monitoring, micronutrients, deworming medication, and food supplementation. Olivia’s parents will also receive nutrition lessons to teach them what, when, and how to feed her a proper diet that will help her grow up healthy.
Olivia loves to play with her older sister and her mother is excited for her to receive treatment. “I would like for my daughter to be healthy, and to not get sick anymore,” she shares.