From red to green: Muad is making a full recovery from malnutrition
Little Muad in Somalia was in danger of dying from starvation. At 18 months old, Muad was so thin, he was the weight of a 4-month-old baby.
His mum Fatuma walked with her four kids for days to find help for Muad and refuge from the drought ravaging Somalia.
“My child is sick and we are looking for food,” Fatuma said when she finally arrived at a camp cradling her starving child.
“My biggest fear is that he might die of hunger. He can’t breastfeed. He won’t take food. He needs treatment,” she said.
Muad was so weak from hunger, he’d never taken his first steps.
Extreme hunger robs kids of their physical growth, intellectual development, and ability to fight off illness. Without proper nutrition, a child’s heart literally shrinks. In severe cases like Muad’s, their liver, kidneys, and intestines start shutting down.
At the clinic, Maud’s upper-arm measurement was in the red zone: the colour no mother ever wants to see. It meant Maud’s life was in grave danger.
But thanks to the compassion and care of supporters like you, Muad received special therapeutic food and support before it was too late.
With emergency food and support, Muad has been making excellent progress. Day by day, his spark and strength returned.
The nurses praise Fatuma for rigorously following the treatment prescribed. His mother’s love and care have been vital to Muad’s survival and recovery.
And so have supporters like you.
Today, Muad is so much healthier and smiling. Look how close Muad’s upper-arm measurement is to the green zone now! The colour of health and hope.
For Fatuma, that small band of green means everything.
“I am very happy my baby is feeling better!” Fatuma rejoices. Her heart is full of joy.
“When he was sick, he was not playing and wasn’t able to move around. Now he is playing and moving around, and he is eating well.”
To make sure Muad continues to grow healthy, Fatuma and her children joined our emergency food assistance and nutrition programmes, which supporters like you help make possible.
Fatuma has also received hygiene training and a sanitation kit to help her practice good hygiene and protect her children from disease.
Fatuma has always had big dreams for Muad’s future. “I want him to become educated,” she says. “I want him to be a doctor.” Because supporters like you cared, those dreams are back within reach.
Over the last 10 years, thanks to compassionate people like you, 9 out of 10 of the severely malnourished children we treated, precious children just like Muad, have made a full recovery.
Learn more about how you can help children like Muad survive hunger, recover, and thrive.
His mum Fatuma walked with her four kids for days to find help for Muad and refuge from the drought ravaging Somalia.
“My child is sick and we are looking for food,” Fatuma said when she finally arrived at a camp cradling her starving child.
“My biggest fear is that he might die of hunger. He can’t breastfeed. He won’t take food. He needs treatment,” she said.
Muad was so weak from hunger, he’d never taken his first steps.
Extreme hunger robs kids of their physical growth, intellectual development, and ability to fight off illness. Without proper nutrition, a child’s heart literally shrinks. In severe cases like Muad’s, their liver, kidneys, and intestines start shutting down.
At the clinic, Maud’s upper-arm measurement was in the red zone: the colour no mother ever wants to see. It meant Maud’s life was in grave danger.
But thanks to the compassion and care of supporters like you, Muad received special therapeutic food and support before it was too late.
With emergency food and support, Muad has been making excellent progress. Day by day, his spark and strength returned.
The nurses praise Fatuma for rigorously following the treatment prescribed. His mother’s love and care have been vital to Muad’s survival and recovery.
And so have supporters like you.
Today, Muad is so much healthier and smiling. Look how close Muad’s upper-arm measurement is to the green zone now! The colour of health and hope.
For Fatuma, that small band of green means everything.
“I am very happy my baby is feeling better!” Fatuma rejoices. Her heart is full of joy.
“When he was sick, he was not playing and wasn’t able to move around. Now he is playing and moving around, and he is eating well.”
To make sure Muad continues to grow healthy, Fatuma and her children joined our emergency food assistance and nutrition programmes, which supporters like you help make possible.
Fatuma has also received hygiene training and a sanitation kit to help her practice good hygiene and protect her children from disease.
Fatuma has always had big dreams for Muad’s future. “I want him to become educated,” she says. “I want him to be a doctor.” Because supporters like you cared, those dreams are back within reach.
Over the last 10 years, thanks to compassionate people like you, 9 out of 10 of the severely malnourished children we treated, precious children just like Muad, have made a full recovery.
Learn more about how you can help children like Muad survive hunger, recover, and thrive.