Correlation Between Maternal Nutritional Status (Stunting) and Maternal Mental Health: A Secondary Data Analysis on the Psychological Impact of Malnutrition on Parenting Patterns

Abstract

This study examines the association between maternal nutritional status, childhood stunting, and maternal mental health in Indonesia, emphasizing the frequently overlooked psychological burden experienced by caregivers. Utilizing a quantitative methodology with a cross-sectional secondary data analysis design, this study analyzed 34,852 mother–child dyads from the 2022 Indonesian Nutritional Status Survey (SSGI) and Riskesdas repositories. The primary objective was to assess the relationship between maternal Chronic Energy Deficiency (CED), child growth outcomes, and maternal emotional mental disorders. Multiple logistic regression was employed to evaluate the impact of nutritional indicators on maternal mental health using SRQ-20 scores. The results show that 22.8% of mothers with stunted children experienced significant psychological distress (Spearman’s ), nearly twice the rate observed among mothers of non-stunted children. Maternal CED was a strong predictor of both childhood stunting and maternal anxiety, while households with stunted children also exhibited 45% lower psychosocial stimulation. These findings indicate that current nutrition-focused interventions are insufficient without the integration of maternal mental health screening, particularly during the first 1,000 days of life (HPK), to effectively break the transgenerational cycle of malnutrition.