Investigation of Nutritional Status and Cognitive Development Among Pre-School Children in Enugu State

The relationship between nutritional adequacy and cognitive development in early childhood is well established, and examining this relationship in pre-school settings in South East Nigeria provides evidence for integrated health and education programming. This study investigated the relationship between nutritional status and cognitive development indicators among children aged 3 to 5 years attending government nursery schools in Enugu North and Enugu East Local Government Areas, Enugu State. A cross-sectional descriptive design was employed with 240 children whose anthropometric measurements were recorded alongside cognitive screening using the Raven's Coloured Progressive Matrices adapted for Nigerian pre-schoolers. Teacher assessments of language, memory, and problem-solving were supplemented by dietary recall interviews with parents. Results showed that 28.3 percent of sampled children were stunted and 14.2 percent were underweight. Children with normal nutritional status scored significantly higher on cognitive screening assessments (p < 0.001). Language development was the most nutritionally sensitive cognitive domain. Children from households receiving government school feeding scored better on both nutritional and cognitive indicators. The study concludes that nutritional deprivation significantly compromises cognitive readiness among Enugu State pre-schoolers. Recommendations include mandatory nutritional assessments at nursery enrolment, expansion of school feeding programmes, and collaboration between the Ministry of Education and Ministry of Health in developing integrated ECD nutrition-cognition protocols for South East Nigeria. Keywords: nutritional status, cognitive development, pre-school children, Enugu State, school feeding