Notwithstanding the much-hyped drives by the Centre, full immunization coverage showed little progress and Diarrhoea continued to be the major health problem for many children in the country, according to the findings of the final report of the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-3), 2005-06.
``Progress in vaccination coverage varies markedly among the states. In 11 states, there has been a substantial deterioration in full immunization coverage in the last seven years, due to a decline in vaccination coverage for both DPT and polio. Large decline were seen in Maharashtra, Mizoram, Andhra Pradesh, and Punjab. On the other hand, there was major improvement in full immunization coverage in Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Sikkim, and West Bengal. Other states with marked improvements in full immunization coverage were Assam, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Madhya Pradesh, Meghalaya, and Uttaranchal,'' said the survey.
The situation regarding child immunization rates during this period has not been very encouraging. Overall, there was only a marginal improvement in full vaccination coverage, with 44 per cent of children ages 12-23 months receiving all recommended vaccinations, up from 42 per cent seven years earlier. Substantial improvements in coverage have been made in all vaccinations except DPT, which did not change at all between NFHS 2 and NFHS-3. Gains are particularly evident for polio vaccination coverage, but nearly one-quarter of children age 12-23 months did not receive three recommended doses, it said.
Diarrhoea continues to be a major health problem for many children. Although knowledge about Oral Rehydration Salts (ORS) for the treatment of diarrhoea is widespread among mothers, only 58 per cent of children with diarrhoea were taken to a health facility, down from 65 per cent seven years earlier, it said.
Infant mortality continues to decline, dropping from 68 in 1998-99 to 57 in 2005-06 per thousand births. There were particularly notable drops in the infant mortality rate in Bihar, Goa, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Meghalaya, Orissa, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, and Uttar Pradesh.
``The national report paints a mixed picture of India's overall reproductive health status. On the one hand, women are having fewer children and infant mortality has dropped in the seven-year period since the last NFHS survey in 1998-99. On the other hand, anaemia and malnutrition are still widespread among children and adults. And, in an unusual juxtaposition, more adults, especially urban women, are overweight or obese than they were seven years ago,'' it said.
There has been the increase in wasting, or weight for height, among children under age three years. At the same time, there has been very marginal change in the percentage of children who are underweight (43% in NFHS-2 and 40% in NFHS-3). NFHS-3 also found high prevalence of anaemia - 70 per cent - in children age 6-59 months. Anaemia in India is primarily linked to poor nutrition.
Women and men suffer a dual burden of overnutrition and undernutrition. More than one third of women are too thin, while 13 per cent are overweight or obese. In all, nearly half of married women are either underweight or overweight. One-third of men are too thin, and 9 per cent are overweight or obese. The states with the largest percentage of overweight women and men are Punjab, Kerala, and Delhi, especially among the more educated.
Anaemia is also disturbingly common among adults. More than half of women in India (55%) are anaemic. Anaemia among pregnant women during that period has also increased. Even though men are much less likely than women to be anaemic, anaemia levels in men are at around 24 per cent.