Iron deficiency primarily affects pregnant women, women of childbearing age, and young children, and can affect half the people in these segments of the population. The consequences of malnutrition are varied and far-reaching. In infants and young children, undernutrition and growth retardation are associated with reduced physical activity, lowered resistance to infection, impaired intellectual development and cognitive abilities, and increased morbidity and mortality. Low birth-weight, itself commonly a result of maternal malnutrition, is associated with impairment of subsequent growth performance and high neonatal and infant mortality. In adults, undernourishment and anaemia can lead to poor health and productivity, resulting in impaired physical and intellectual performance, which can constrain community and national development.
Poverty is the root cause of malnutrition.
Stable food availability at the national, regional, and household levels is a cornerstone of nutritional well-being. Aggregate estimates of food availability at the global, regional, or country level, while often indicative, cannot truly reflect household or individual food consumption. Food consumption is affected by the ability of households to produce or procure food, which in turn depends on income levels and distribution, food availability and wastage, prices, and consumer choices. Of supreme importance at the individual level is the role of women and their ability to allocate time to child care. Since these figures do not take into account problems of intra-household food distribution, or seasonal or acute problems of malnutrition or infection, the actual number of undernourished people is likely to be higher.