Effect Of The One Egg One Day Program On Changes In Zinc Levels And Anthropometric Status In Stunted Toddlers

Abstract

Stunting remains a serious public health problem in Indonesia. In this context, hair zinc levels serve as a sensitive long-term biomarker for assessing chronic zinc deficiency, a condition that is very common in stunted toddlers and directly contributes to stunted linear growth, while anthropometric status (especially the Height/Age z-score) provides an objective measure of impaired growth outcomes. Locally resource-based nutritional interventions, such as the consumption of omega-3-rich chicken eggs, offer significant strategic potential as a complete nutritional package rich in high-quality protein, zinc, omega-3 fatty acids (DHA), and various other essential micronutrients.

This study aimed to analyze the effectiveness of the one egg a day program on changes in hair zinc levels and anthropometric status in stunted toddlers.

The study used a pre-experimental design with a static group comparison approach. Data collection was conducted twice: a pre-test and a post-test. The data collected included the anthropometric status of stunted toddlers (height and weight) and zinc levels obtained from hair samples. Hair samples were taken from the back of the head by cutting 1.5-3 cm from the hair roots of the respondents. The data obtained were then analyzed using a paired t-test.

The One Egg a Day, One Egg program significantly increased hair zinc levels and anthropometric status (Z-score) in stunted toddlers, with a 2-tailed sig of 0.000 for each.

The use of omega-3 chicken eggs can be an alternative support option to address stunting in Indonesia through diversification of processed chicken egg products within the One Egg One Day program.