The Need
250 million children with disabilities and children without family care are at risk of malnutrition–not because solutions don't exist, but because existing systems weren't designed to reach them.
Children with disabilities and children without family care face unique nutrition and feeding challenges that mainstream programs simply don't address. Standard nutrition interventions often don’t meet the needs of a child who needs support sitting upright to eat safely, or who requires food prepared to a specific texture. Without trained caregivers and inclusive health systems, these children face high rates of malnutrition leading to preventable illness, developmental delays, and in too many cases, early death.
A cycle we can break
When families can't access disability services in their communities, they often believe their children will receive better care in residential institutions. But the opposite is true: malnutrition rates in institutions can reach 90%. Without family care, children don’t receive the individualized care they need to thrive. Supporting families to meet children’s nutrition and feeding needs helps families stay together.
Nourishing ALL Children
Children with disabilities are three times more likely to be malnourished than children without disabilities. They may experience feeding difficulties that require specialized techniques–ways of positioning, pacing, or preparing food that most caregivers have never been taught. These aren't complicated interventions. They're skills that can be learned, often in a single session.
Children living outside of family care face similar challenges. Children without family care often lack access to caregivers trained to recognize and respond to their individual needs.
Currently, nutrition policies and programs often do not include children with disabilities or children without family care. This means that health workers may not get the support they need to include children with disabilities in routine nutrition services, and national decision makers don’t have access to good data to develop inclusive policies. SPOON is working to make sure that all children are included and given a chance to thrive.
What transformation looks like
When we met Faith in Zambia, she was seven years old and the size of a toddler. Her disability made every mealtime a struggle–she choked and cried, and her grandmother was desperate for help.
At a village health clinic where staff had recently completed our training, a provider used our app Count Me In to assess Faith's needs and create a care plan tailored specifically for her. Within an hour, Faith's grandmother was feeding her new foods in a new way–without struggle.
Faith is now growing and thriving. The clinic continues to monitor her progress, and her grandmother has the knowledge to support her at home.
Faith's story shows what's possible when caregivers have the right tools and training. Our goal is to make sure every child like Faith–all 250 million of them–has access to the same support.