TY - JOUR T1 - Making the most of food aid to help prevent child and maternal deaths JF - Global Health: Science and Practice JO - GLOB HEALTH SCI PRACT SP - 141 LP - 144 DO - 10.9745/GHSP-D-13-00084 VL - 1 IS - 2 AU - Bruce Cogill Y1 - 2013/08/01 UR - http://www.ghspjournal.org/content/1/2/141.abstract N2 - Advances in child nutrition over the last several decades are creating momentum for a programmatic push to reduce undernutrition worldwide. The contribution of food aid may be small, but, nonetheless, U.S. food aid policy should be revamped to benefit more effectively and more efficiently the children and mothers in need. The recent series on nutrition in The Lancet,1 together with a paper by Tappis et al.2 in this issue of GHSP, provide an opportunity to reflect on the great progress in nutrition that has been achieved in the past few decades. Child survival and nutrition statistics tell a compelling story of both the accomplishments and also the challenges. Despite alarming increases in the numbers of overweight or obese children, undernutrition among children continues to decrease in much of the world. According to the Lancet series, the estimated number of children under 5 years who are stunted has steadily dropped, from 253 million in 1990, to 178 million in 2005, and to 164.8 million in 2011.1 These worldwide decreases are led by historically unprecedented improvements in Latin America and parts of Asia, especially China and Southeast Asia. The decline in numbers globally has occurred while global population has grown by 31% since 1990. Unfortunately, however, the numbers of stunted children in sub-Saharan Africa continue to increase. Specific nutrition and health interventions probably have played only a supportive role in the decline in global numbers. The combination of greater economic opportunities, education, gender and social equity, political engagement, and social protection; improved infrastructure; and public nutrition and health programs has saved lives and changed the planet. This has been the case in countries such as Brazil, China, and Thailand, and even in developed countries over the last 100 years. Consensus is now emerging that concerted programmatic actions can successfully … ER -