An Intervension Using Gabus Fish Flakes to Improve Body Weight, Height and Nutrient Intake in Undernourished Toddlers

Abstract

Undernutrition remains a nutritional problem among children under five years of age, particularly in populations with inadequate dietary intake. Snakehead fish (Channa striata) floss is a locally available animal-source food that may provide additional energy and nutrients to support the nutritional status of undernourished toddlers. Objective: This study aimed to determine the effect of snakehead fish floss supplementation on body weight, height, and nutrient intake among undernourished toddlers aged 24–59 months. A quasi-experimental study with a pretest–posttest control group design was conducted among 20 undernourished toddlers selected by purposive sampling. Participants were divided into an intervention group (n=10) and a control group (n=10). The intervention group received 30 g of snakehead fish floss daily for 30 consecutive days, while the control group received no fish-floss supplementation. Body weight and height were measured before and after the intervention, and dietary intake was assessed using a 24-hour dietary recall. Within-group changes were analyzed using the Wilcoxon Signed-Rank test, while differences in changes between groups were analyzed using the Mann–Whitney U test. Within the intervention group, significant increases were observed in body weight from 9.44 ± 1.24 to 9.68 ± 1.11 kg (p=0.007), height from 84.77 ± 6.74 to 84.88 ± 6.66 cm (p=0.016), energy intake by 168.20 kcal (p=0.005), protein by 4.92 g (p=0.009), carbohydrate by 20.84 g (p=0.005), and calcium by 59.00 mg (p=0.009). However, comparison of changes between groups showed significantly greater increases in body weight (U=11.0, p=0.002), height (U=25.5, p=0.042), and energy intake (U=7.0, p=0.001) in the intervention group. Differences between groups were not statistically significant for protein (p=0.082), fat (p=0.307), carbohydrate (p=0.174), or calcium (p=0.112). Daily supplementation with 30 g of snakehead fish floss for 30 days was associated with greater improvements in body weight, height, and energy intake among undernourished toddlers compared with the control group. However, the intervention did not demonstrate statistically significant between-group differences in protein, fat, carbohydrate, or calcium intake. Given the small sample size and short intervention period, these findings should be considered preliminary evidence of the potential benefit of snakehead fish floss as a locally sourced supplementary food.