[Nutrition and feeding situation of Chinese 0- 5 years old infants and children in 8 provinces, cities and villages in 2004].

OBJECTIVE: To investigate and analyze present nutrition and feeding situation of 0 - 5 years old infants and children in Chinese cities and villages and to understand main problems existed during Chinese infants and children's develop-growing period in order to provide a basis for further drafting measures of nutrition amelioration. METHODS: To utilize an "Investigation to Nutrition Situation of 0 - 5 Years Old Infants & Children" which is opened in Chinese 8 provinces, cities and villages in 2004 by Social Women Dept. of Ministry of Public Health, P. R. China to proceed measurement of height and body weight for 17081 infants and children of 0 - 5 years of age in 8 provinces, cities and villages, also with Questionnaire form to proceed an investigation to parents of above said infants and children about their feeding situation. RESULTS: The develop-growing difference between cities and villages' infants and children appears to begin in April, a high occurrence period for 1 - 2 years old infants and children in villages with long period chronicle malnutrition as main cause that Chinese western area villages' nutrition rate is 20% above to be higher than Chinese middle and eastern areas. Infants and children's mother milk feeding rate is higher than whole nation's children nutrition monitoring result in 2000 with villages obviously higher than cities. In adding infants' supplementary foods there obviously existed unscientific and unreasonable problem of adding time, adding quality and quantity of supplementary foods. To analyze cause it is besides economic factors there existed obvious relation with shortage of knowledge in nutrition and health care by infants and children's parents.