Determinants of Stunting Incidence in Children Under Five Years of Age at the Rumbia Health Center, Indonesia

Stunting is linear growth retardation and a major public health problem among children worldwide. This study was done to investigate the determinants of stunting in children under five years at the Rumbia Health Center, Indonesia.

This case-control study was done on 82 (41 cases and 41 controls) subjects matched by age and sex, taken by purposive sampling involving infants and children aged 6-59 months in Rumbia District, Bombana Regency, Indonesia, consisting of 5 Village. Data were collected using medical records and a researcher-made questionnaire and analyzed by odds ratios and logistic regression using SPSS 16. The significance level was set at 0.05. 

The results based on multivariate analysis showed that the incidence of stunting was influenced by a number of factors, including a history of exclusive breastfeeding (OR=0.352), birth weight (OR=5.106), family income (OR=0.703), and mother’s education level (OR=0.175). However, the mother’s education level was significantly related to the incidence of stunting in this analysis model (p=0.003).

Indonesian mothers should be more active in accessing information about stunting and how to prevent it. Community health nurses and other members of the health care team are recommended to intensify the provision of stunting education and information to the community, especially to at-risk families. Also, special attention must be paid to women’s access to higher education.