Young children are growing quickly and require basic foods to meet their needs. This is malnutrition and it is a result of war. In Somalia during 1993 and Liberia in 1995, more than 50 per cent of the children in some regions were suffering from malnutrition. Malnutrition causes the greatest death among young children, especially those under the age of three. Malnutrition weakens children's ability to fight off common childhood diseases, and the effects of these diseases are often fatal in malnourished children.
Malnutrition can cause suffering in the brain.
Families under the stress and strain of war have little chance to give children the close attention they need. Children's needs become neglected since parents have to spend more time outside the home searching for water, food, or work. Children's health and growth are affected by the lack of fresh fruits and vegetables during war, which are important sources of vitamins and minerals. Even when the war is over, it may take a long time for children to return to normal feeding habits. Some will not know how to prepare any foods other than the maize, beans and oil that had been given them in refugee camps.