thumb|300px|World Map - Share of children with a weight too low for their height (wasting)
In medicine, wasting, also known as wasting syndrome, refers to the process by which a debilitating disease causes muscle and fat tissue to "waste" away. Wasting is sometimes referred to as "acute malnutrition" because it is believed that episodes of wasting have a short duration, in contrast to stunting, which is regarded as chronic malnutrition. An estimated 45 million children under 5 years of age (or 6.7%) were wasted in 2021. Wasting prevalence declined from 7.5% in 2012 to 6.8% in 2022, with 6.2% of children under five years old projected to be wasted in 2030, more than double the 3% Sustainable Development Goals target. Prevalence is highest in Southern Asia, followed by Oceania (excluding Australia and New Zealand) and South-eastern Asia. Additionally, an increase in protein-rich foods such as peanut butter and legumes (dried beans and peas) can assist in controlling the loss of muscle mass.
See also
- Anorexia
- Atrophy
- Cachexia
- Superior mesenteric artery syndrome
- Weight loss