Malnutrition
- 45% of deaths among children under 5 are linked to malnutrition (WHO).
- Around 50% of malnourished children have no access to treatment, despite the availability of effective solutions.
- In 2024, ALIMA treated more than 260,000 children suffering from severe acute malnutrition.
Malnutrition is not inevitable. With the right solutions, ALIMA works to treat and prevent this crisis affecting the most vulnerable.
Humanitarian context and challenge
A major issue with irreversible consequences
Child malnutrition stunts growth and weakens the immune system, making children more vulnerable to disease. It manifests as:
- Significant weight loss, sometimes accompanied by nutritional edema and micronutrient deficiencies (essential vitamins and minerals).
- Stunted growth
- Increased risk of severe illness (infections, anemia, neurological complications)
- Lifelong consequences if left untreated
💡 Why does this matter?
- A global emergency: Malnutrition affects tens of millions of children every year.
- Limited access to treatment: 3 out of 4 malnourished children do not receive care.
- Solutions exist: ALIMA develops effective strategies to expand access to treatment and prevent relapses.
📌 Since 2019, over 5 million parents and caregivers have been trained to detect malnutrition using the MUAC-mothers (PB-mères) bracelet.
📌 Since 2019, ALIMA has treated more than 1.2 million children suffering from acute malnutrition.
➡️ ALIMA combines treatment, prevention, and innovation to save lives.
ALIMA’s action
💡 How does ALIMA fight malnutrition?
Since 2009, ALIMA has been active in over 10 countries, addressing malnutrition through a comprehensive approach:
🔹Treatment and prevention
- Management of acute malnutrition in health centers and at home
- “1,000 Days” program: prenatal and postnatal care, nutritional supplements (SQ-LNS) for infants, and acute malnutrition prevention
- MUAC-mothers: a program that enables families to detect early signs of malnutrition using a simple color-coded bracelet
🔹Research and Innovation
OptiMA (Optimizing the Management of Acute Malnutrition)
- An innovative protocol for simpler, more effective treatment
- A family-centered approach: parents learn to detect and monitor malnutrition at home using a MUAC bracelet
- An integrated model treating all malnourished children—moderate and severe—without distinction
- Optimized use of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF), the most expensive component of treatment, for greater impact at equal cost
- Goal: Scale this approach to treat more children with the same resources
📌 Over the past decade, ALIMA has developed a proven, field-adapted model to reduce child mortality and prevent relapses.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
- Inadequate access to balanced food
- Lack of appropriate healthcare
- Poor sanitary conditions
ALIMA uses an integrated approach combining medical care, nutritional support, and community-based follow-up to maximize impact.
It’s an early detection initiative that enables parents to assess their child’s nutritional status using a color-coded bracelet.
Our reports and publications on malnutrition
ALIMA conducts committed scientific research, grounded in the realities of the field.
| Publication Title | Link | Authors | Journal | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Optimizing management of uncomplicated acute malnutrition in children in rural Niger | Read the publication | Maguy Daures, Jérémie Hien, Kevin Phelan, Harouna Boubacar, Sanoussi Atte, Mahamadou Aboubacar, Ahmad AGM Aly, Baweye Mayoum, Jean-Claude Azani, Jean-Jacques Koffi, Benjamin Seri, Aurélie Beuscart, Valérie Journot, Victoire Hubert, Moumouni Kinda, Xavier Anglaret, Cécile Cazes, Suvi Kangas, André Briend, Susan Shepherd, Renaud Becquet | Archives of Public Health | 2025 |
| Association between admission criteria and body composition among young children with moderate acute malnutrition | Read the publication | Cichon B., Yaméogo C.W., Iuel-Brockdorf A.S., et al. | Scientific Reports | 2020 |
| Short Malnourished Children and Fat Accumulation With Food Supplementation | Read the publication | Fabiansen C., Phelan K.P.Q., Cichon B., et al. | Pediatrics | 2018 |
| Effectiveness of food supplements in increasing fat-free tissue accretion in children with moderate acute malnutrition | Read the publication | Fabiansen C., Yaméogo C.W., Iuel-Brockdorf A-S., et al. | PLoS Medicine | 2017 |
| Mothers screening for malnutrition by mid-upper arm circumference is non-inferior to community health workers | Read the publication | Alé F.G., Phelan K.P., Issa H., et al. | Archives of Public Health | 2016 |
| Evaluation of the acceptability of improved supplementary foods for the treatment of moderate acute malnutrition in Burkina Faso using a mixed method approach | Iuel-Brockdorf A.S., Draebel T.A., Ritz C., et al. | Appetite | 2016 | |
| Low mid-upper arm circumference identifies children with a high risk of death who should be the priority target for treatment | Read the publication | Briend A., Alvarez J.L., Avril N., et al. | BMC Nutrition | 2016 |
| Children with moderate acute malnutrition have inflammation not explained by maternal reports of illness and clinical symptoms | Read the publication | Cichon B., Fabiansen C., Yaméogo C.W., et al. | BMC Nutrition | 2016 |
| Evaluation of the acceptability of improved supplementary foods using a mixed method approach in Burkina Faso | Read the publication | Iuel-Brockdorf A.S., Draebel T.A., Ritz C., et al. | Appetite | 2016 |
| Short children with a low midupper arm circumference respond to food supplementation | Read the publication | Fabiansen C., Phelan K.P., Cichon B., et al. | American Journal of Clinical Nutrition | 2016 |
| Mothers Understand And Can Do It (MUAC): a comparison of mothers and community health workers | Read the publication | Blackwell N., Myatt M., Allafort-Duverger T., et al. | Archives of Public Health | 2015 |
| Acceptability of new formulations of corn-soy blends and lipid-based nutrient supplements in Province du Passoré, Burkina Faso | Read the publication | Iuel-Brockdorf A.S., Dræbel T.A., Fabiansen C., et al. | Appetite | 2015 |
| Mothers Understand And Can do it (MUAC): a comparison of mothers and community health workers determining mid-upper arm circumference | Read the publication | Blackwell N., Myatt M., Allafort-Duverger T., et al. | Archives of Public Health | 2015 |
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