Introduction The effects of malnutrition on human performance, health and survival have been the subject of extensive research for several decades and studies show that malnutrition affects physical growth, morbidity, mortality, cognitive development, reproduction, and physical work capacity. Malnutrition is an underlying factor in many diseases in both children and adults, and it contributes greatly to the disability-adjusted life years worldwide. Malnutrition is caused by various factors, which includes an individual 's vulnerability to health disorders due to fragile physical health conditions and different lifestyles. The first category, wherein physical health conditions determine an individual 's vulnerability to malnutrition, is aptly related to infants, children, pregnant women, and the elderly. Factors that contribute to malnutrition are many and varied. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the level of malnutrition and the impact of some socio cultural factors of households on the nutritional status of children under five years of age and the elderly in Barangay Banga, Talisay, Batangas. The factors included are the demographic profile of the respondents such as age, sex, weight, number of siblings, marital status, income and occupation of the parents, socio-cultural factors such as eating habits, physical activity, religion and educational attainment. The Reference standard used is the Body Mass Index (BMI) since the study is a cross-sectional descriptive survey using a structured questionnaire and measurements of weight and height. This study examines the relationship between nutritional status, as indicated by BMI, and to determine the socio cultural factors affecting under-nourishment or over-nourishment of the target population. In addition to determine malnutrition
Introduction The effects of malnutrition on human performance, health and survival have been the subject of extensive research for several decades and studies show that malnutrition affects physical growth, morbidity, mortality, cognitive development, reproduction, and physical work capacity. Malnutrition is an underlying factor in many diseases in both children and adults, and it contributes greatly to the disability-adjusted life years worldwide. Malnutrition is caused by various factors, which includes an individual 's vulnerability to health disorders due to fragile physical health conditions and different lifestyles. The first category, wherein physical health conditions determine an individual 's vulnerability to malnutrition, is aptly related to infants, children, pregnant women, and the elderly. Factors that contribute to malnutrition are many and varied. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the level of malnutrition and the impact of some socio cultural factors of households on the nutritional status of children under five years of age and the elderly in Barangay Banga, Talisay, Batangas. The factors included are the demographic profile of the respondents such as age, sex, weight, number of siblings, marital status, income and occupation of the parents, socio-cultural factors such as eating habits, physical activity, religion and educational attainment. The Reference standard used is the Body Mass Index (BMI) since the study is a cross-sectional descriptive survey using a structured questionnaire and measurements of weight and height. This study examines the relationship between nutritional status, as indicated by BMI, and to determine the socio cultural factors affecting under-nourishment or over-nourishment of the target population. In addition to determine malnutrition