𝐍𝐮𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐆𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬 𝐌𝐚𝐬𝐤 𝐑𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐎𝐛𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐌𝐢𝐜𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐮𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐑𝐢𝐬𝐤𝐬

…𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒆 𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒏𝒖𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒇𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒔, 𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒐𝒃𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒚, 𝒎𝒊𝒄𝒓𝒐𝒏𝒖𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒅𝒆𝒇𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒊𝒆𝒔, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒑𝒐𝒐𝒓 𝒅𝒊𝒆𝒕𝒔 𝒑𝒖𝒕 𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒏’𝒔 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒕𝒉 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒇𝒖𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒕 𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒌

By Sonam Choden

Bhutan has made significant progress in child nutrition over the past decade, yet new evidence shows persistent and evolving risks that could affect long-term development. According to UNICEF’s global report, Feeding Profit: How Food Environments are Failing Children, the prevalence of overweight and obesity among children and adolescents aged 5 to 19 years has tripled over the past two decades, rising from six percent in 2000 to 18 percent in 2022. Girls are disproportionately affected.

At the same time, anaemia continues to affect nearly half of children under five and more than a third of adolescent girls. Stunting, wasting, and underweight remain concerns in some communities. Experts warn that this “triple burden” of malnutrition, which includes undernutrition, micronutrient deficiencies, and overweight, threatens children’s physical health, cognitive development, and future socio-economic potential.

Underlying these trends is Bhutan’s changing food environment. A 2023 UNICEF survey of young people aged 13 to 24 found that adolescents and families are increasingly exposed to cheap, ultra-processed foods, including sugar-sweetened drinks, fast foods, and salty snacks. Marketing campaigns heavily influence dietary choices both within and beyond schools. Dietary diversity among young children remains low: only 18 percent of children aged 6 to 23 months meet minimum standards. Most children rely on rice and other starchy staples, with insufficient consumption of vegetables, fruits, and protein-rich foods necessary for healthy growth.

“Bhutan is confronting a new reality,” said Lyonchhen Dasho Tshering Tobgay. “Poor nutrition weakens learning outcomes and reduces future productivity. We are destroying the future of our children before it even begins, and this also increases the risk of costly non-communicable diseases.”

Despite these challenges, Bhutan has achieved measurable progress. Stunting among children under five has nearly halved in the past decade, reaching about 18 percent in 2023. More than half of children under five are now free from undernutrition, while around 90,000 students benefit from government-supported fortified school meals. Policy interventions, including the “one child, one egg” initiative, expanded iron and folic acid supplementation, and updates to the National Food and Nutrition Policy, have contributed to these improvements.

To accelerate efforts, Bhutan has launched Nourishing Bhutan – Framework for Action, a national roadmap to ensure every child grows up healthy and strong. The launch coincides with UNICEF’s new global child nutrition report, which shows overweight and obesity are rising rapidly among children, including in Bhutan.

Rising overweight and obesity present new risks. Beyond long-term health implications such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease, unhealthy diets can affect children’s self-esteem and social development. “Children are growing up surrounded by foods that harm their bodies and confidence,” said Rushnan Murtaza, representative of UNICEF Bhutan.

The report identifies several priority actions to sustain progress and address emerging challenges. These include ensuring affordable and nutritious meals in schools and communities, enforcing stricter regulation of unhealthy food marketing, and improving the use of data to monitor nutrition risks. Technology, including digital tools and artificial intelligence, can support prevention, monitoring, and treatment of malnutrition while promoting dietary diversity. Strengthening collaboration across government ministries, UN agencies, the private sector, communities, and youth is also critical.

Without comprehensive action, Bhutan risks a generation facing both undernutrition and overweight, which could undermine human capital and future economic potential. While the country has made significant gains, underlying challenges in dietary quality, food environments, and micronutrient deficiencies show that progress remains fragile. Nurturing every child’s nutrition is not only a health imperative but a strategic investment in the nation’s future.