Stunting or failure to thrive is a growth disorder in children which is currently still a national issue. The main cause of stunting is inadequate nutritional intake, especially in the first 1000 days of life (1000 HPK). In addition to the problem of nutritional intake, environmental conditions also play a role in the process of stunting. So far, the role of the environment in relation to the incidence of stunting were associated with sanitation conditions (availability of clean water, latrines, and other physical conditions of the house environment) which have an impact on increasing the incidence of infection in children, which causes growth disorders.
However, the role of the environment in the occurrence of stunting can also occur due to exposure to toxic materials in the environment. Research by a team of researchers from the Department of Environmental Health and the Department of Nutrition, Faculty of Public Health, Universitas Diponegoro, proved that exposure to pesticides is a risk factor for stunting in elementary school-age children in Brebes district. Our other research also proves that exposure to pesticides in pregnant women increases the risk of low birth weight babies (LBW). The pathophysiology of stunting and LBW due to exposure to pesticides is caused, among other things, 1) disturbances in the function of growth hormone (thyroid hormone and IGF-1), 2) disturbances in the function of absorption of food materials in the gastrointestinal tract or what is known as Environmental Enteric Disfunction (EED) ), and 3) the occurrence of oxidative stress which causes a waste of energy to overcome the problem of toxicity in the body, so that the energy used for growth becomes inadequate.
Related to some of the research findings, in efforts to control stunting problems, in addition to the supplementary feeding program (PMT) which is currently being promoted, efforts to improve environmental conditions, including reducing the risk of exposure to toxic substances in the environment, such as pesticides, need to get attention and become a priority scale.
Research results link:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30685774/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29995019/
