Question

What is the purpose of a Muac?

Answer 1

Hint: Malnutrition occurs when a person's diet lacks sufficient nutrients or the proper nutrient balance for optimal health. Causes of malnutrition include inappropriate dietary choices, a low income, difficulty obtaining food, and various physical and mental health conditions.

Complete answer:
It is critical to identify children with nutritional problems early on, as malnutrition is a leading cause of death in children. The mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) measure is recommended for screening purposes because it is a quick way of identifying children at risk. The referral to feeding programs must be organized following the MUAC cut-off points and the criteria were chosen. The amount of time and resources devoted to malnutrition will be determined by the extent to which malnutrition is a cause of death.

UNICEF provides a variety of mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) measuring tapes. MUAC tapes are primarily used to measure the upper arm circumference of children, but they can also be used to detect malnutrition in pregnant women.

There are various kinds of MUAC tape available. All are graduated in millimetres, and some are colour-coded (red, yellow, and green) to indicate a child's or adult's nutritional status. Depending on the tape type, the colour codes and gradations differ.

Thus, MUAC stands for Mid-Upper Arm Circumference. A tool that is used to assess one's nutritional status. The primary goal of MUAC is to determine whether a patient is acutely malnourished.

Note: In general, if a child is malnourished, we treat him or her with ready-to-use therapeutic food or RUTF. These foods are high in fat and protein, and they are fortified with vitamins and minerals that are required to treat severe acute malnutrition. A few weeks of RUTF treatment can result in significant improvements. PIH will frequently take steps to improve patients' families' long-term food security. This could include enrolling people in job training, providing food assistance, or providing farming materials.