Smartphone App to Tackle Malnutrition in India

Germany-based non-profit Welthungerhilfe has developed an Artificial Intelligence (AI) smartphone app, powered by Microsoft Azure, to tackle malnutrition in India.

To tackle malnutrition in India, a Germany-based non-profit Welthungerhilfe has developed an Artificial Intelligence (AI) smartphone application. Microsoft Azure powers the app.

The Child Growth Monitor -- a cloud-based app powered by Microsoft Azure and AI services -- can detect malnutrition and enable health workers to identify and provide care to children suffering from chronic undernourishment.

Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare - An Overview
Artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare is the discipline using data intensive computer based solutions to improve patient care and outcome.

‘The smartphone app- Child Growth Monitor captures the 3D image of the child's anthropometric measurements, and the data is processed by the health workers to predict the severity of malnutrition in the child.’

By March, the app will help health workers scan 10,000 children under the age of five for signs of malnutrition, across Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, the company said in a statement on Thursday.

Twelve teams of 150 trained health workers have been provided app-enabled smartphones to collect the data of children, it added.

The app uses an infrared sensor available in some smartphones to capture 3D measurements of a child's height, body volume and weight ratio, as well as head and upper arm circumferences down to the millimeter.

Malnutrition - Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment & Prevention
Malnutrition refers to imbalances in a person’s intake of energy or nutrients and can occur due to an excess consumption of nutrients or a lack of nutrients.

The app loads that captured data into Microsoft Azure. Nutritionists and IT specialists then evaluate the scans by using Microsoft AI solutions, pinpointing a child's dietary health.

"Today, more than 800 million people around the world suffer from hunger. You can't solve hunger if you don't know where the hungry people are," said Jochen Moninger, Innovation Director at the Welthungerhilfe.

Kwashiorkor | Protein Malnutrition - Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment, Complications and Prevention
Kwashiorkor is caused by severe protein malnutrition and is characterized by collection of fluid (edema) in the legs and belly. Kwashiorkor can be prevented by consuming a nutritious diet.

"The Child Growth Monitor app will emerge as a recognized, global solution among humanitarian organizations. In India alone, that could free up hundreds of millions of dollars for reinvestment into the lives of children," he added.

The new app will hugely impact the early identification of children suffering from malnutrition, thereby reducing the treatment time.

Marasmus | Protein-Energy Malnutrition - Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis, Treatment and Prevention
Marasmus is a severe potentially life-threatening form of malnutrition caused by a diet deficient in calories and proteins. There is significant wasting of fats, muscles, and tissues of the body leading to a "skin and bones" appearance.

Source-IANS