Our Cause
Hope Gel® addresses the global issue of severe acute malnutrition in children.
We work tirelessly to help children avoid the condition, and to
prevent the death of millions of children each year.
Hope Gel® addresses the global issue of severe acute malnutrition in children.
We work tirelessly to help children avoid the condition, and to
prevent the death of millions of children each year.
Globally, malnutrition accounts for roughly half of all deaths of children under the age of five, yet only one in 10 severely malnourished children get treatment. That amounts to approximately three million children each year whose deaths are entirely preventable. In addition, malnutrition is partly responsible or 45% of childhood deaths.
It is estimated there are nearly 20 million children who are severely acutely malnourished. Most of these children live in south Asia and in sub-Saharan Africa. The large burden of child mortality due to severe acute malnutrition remains largely absent from the international health agenda, and few countries, even in high prevalence areas, have specific national policies aimed at addressing it comprehensively.
Severe acute malnutrition remains a major killer of children under five years of age. Initially, treatment was administered only in medical facilities; this was cost-prohibitive and greatly limited in coverage and impact. It was then found that larger numbers of children with severe acute malnutrition could be treated in their communities (“community-based approach”) through provision of treatment with RUTFs (ready-to-use therapeutic foods).
Further, a child who has suffered from and survives severe acute malnutrition risks permanent physical and mental affects, especially if the malnutrition occurred in the child’s first two years. Identifying those children at risk and administering nutrients to avoid the condition saves lives and prevents long term problems.
Implemented on a large scale, community-based management of severe acute malnutrition will prevent the deaths and long term adverse physical and mental effects of hundreds of thousands of children.
Nutrition is the biggest missed opportunity in global health.