Sameena Yousuf Dar et al JMSCR Volume 05 Issue 06 June 2017 Page 23534 JMSCR Vol||05||Issue||06||Page 23534-23543||June 2017 Nutritional Profile of Children in Orphanages of Kashmir Valley: A Cross sectional Study Authors SameenaYousuf Dar 1 , Rauf-ur Rashid Kaul 2 , Mohamad Rafiq Mir 3 , Tawheeda Ara 4 1 Demonstrator, SKIMS Medical College, 2 Additional Professor, SKIMS, Srinagar 3 Assoc. Professor, SKIMS Medical College, 4 Clinical Psychologist * Corresponding Author Rauf-ur Rashid Kaul, Addl. Professor, Department of Community Medicine, SKIMS, (J&K) India. Email: rauf2000us@yahoo.com ABSTRACT Objective:- To assess the prevalence of nutritional problems among children living in orphanages of Kashmir Valley. Design and Settings:- A cross sectional study design was adopted and the study was conducted in orphanages in 6 randomly selected districts of Kashmir Valley during April 2014 - March 2015. Assessment of factors that might be associated with nutritional problems in the defined population was carried out simultaneously. Results:- Among 450 children, prevalence of underweight was found to be 37 % whereas that of overweight was 2.4 %. It was further observed that the prevalence of stunting among study participants was 37.3 %.The prevalence of underweight was found to have a statistically significant association with age, orphanage setting, duration of stay in institution and personal hygiene.The prevalence of overweight was found to have a statistically significant association with type of orphanage, orphanage setting and protein – calorie intake. A statistically significant association was observed between stunting and age, gender, duration of stay in institution and orphanage setting. Conclusion:- Prevalence of underweight and stunting among children living in orphanages is very high. This calls for immediate attention and urgent action with regard to the nutritional needs of this marginalised section of the society. Keywords:- Orphans, Nutritional status, Underweight, Overweight, Stunting. INTRODUCTION A child is primarily defined by age, with most common consensus being less than 18 years 1 .The most commonly encountered macronutrient related nutritional problems among children are wasting, overweight and stunting. In India, 43.5% of the children under five years of age are underweight and 48 % are stunted 2 . Directly or indirectly malnutrition contributes to more than 60% of 10 million child deaths each year 3 . It is well recognized that 46 percent children fewer than five in South Asia are moderately or severely underweight. Half of the world’s malnourished children are to be found in only three countries, India, Bangladesh and Pakistan 4 .Obesity is also increasing especially in the urban affluent class because of unhealthy eating, consumption of junk www.jmscr.igmpublication.org Impact Factor 5.84 Index Copernicus Value: 83.27 ISSN (e)-2347-176x ISSN (p) 2455-0450 DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.18535/jmscr/v5i6.120