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Who We Help /

Adolescent Girls

With good nutrition, 600 million adolescent girls can break the cycle of malnutrition and poverty.

Well-nourished girls with access to education learn better, earn more over their lifetimes, and can better contribute to their families, communities and countries.

Field Story - Adolescent girls in Indonesia use their smartphones to fight anaemia

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30%

ADOLESCENTS ARE ANAEMIC

10%

DEATHS AMONG ADOLESCENT GIRLS 15 TO 19 ARE DUE TO MATERNAL- OR PREGNANCY-RELATED COMPLICATION

16M

GIRLS 15 TO 19 BECOME PREGNANT EVERY YEAR

The Challenge

Adolescents are missing out on the second window of opportunity.

After infancy, adolescence is the most rapid period of growth with the highest nutritional needs, providing a second window of opportunity for catch-up growth and development.

Until recently, the health and nutrition of adolescents had been neglected in global and national investment, and policy and programming in developing countries.

Malnutrition and adolescents

For biological, social and cultural reasons, girls are disproportionately impacted by malnutrition.

In many cultures around the world, women and girls often eat last and eat least. As a result, women and girls represent 60% of all undernourished people globally.

Malnutrition, along with other factors, such as poverty, gender barriers, and social and cultural norms, contributes to 130 million girls being out of school. Even when girls are in school, anaemia can hold them back from academic achievement and potential future economic empowerment.

Girls who don’t attend school also face a higher risk of pregnancy and early marriage, and are more likely to give birth to smaller infants, perpetuating the intergenerational cycle of undernutrition. Pregnancy and childbirth-related complications are the leading cause of death for girls aged 15 to 19.

Anaemia

Almost 30% of adolescents worldwide are anaemic, approximately half due to iron deficiency

Menstruation increases the nutritional needs of adolescent girls for iron and other micronutrients related to growing bone and muscle mass, including calcium, zinc, and vitamins A and D. Adolescent girls who are anaemic suffer poorer school performance, loss of productivity, and decreased current and future reproductive health.

Our Global Projects

Discover our projects around the world

Browse our complete list of projects to learn about how we deliver high-impact, low-cost, evidence-based nutrition programs for those who need it most.

Browse more projects like these

Bridging the fortification gap in the Philippines

Nutrition International is leading a collaborative effort to improve the micronutrient status of women, adolescent girls and children in the Philippines by improving fortification policies.

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Children receiving vitamin A supplements as part of Malezi Bora in Kenya.

Building Rights for Improved Girl’s Health in Tanzania (BRIGHT)

BRIGHT, funded by Global Affairs Canada, is a seven-year project that seeks to empower adolescents in Tanzania to exercise their sexual and reproductive health and nutrition rights.

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Children receiving vitamin A supplements as part of Malezi Bora in Kenya.

Increase Gains in Nutrition by Integration, Education, Evaluation, Empowerment…

Working alongside our partners, this project will deliver integrated nutrition, health and WASH programming for those who need it most in Malawi, Ghana and Pakistan.

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Children receiving vitamin A supplements as part of Malezi Bora in Kenya.

Realizing Gender Equality, Attitudinal Change and Transformative Systems in…

REACTS-IN contributes to achieving global nutrition targets by improving the health and nutrition of women, adolescent girls and children under five in Bangladesh, Kenya, Somalia and Tanzania.

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Children receiving vitamin A supplements as part of Malezi Bora in Kenya.

Institutionalizing mandatory oil and wheat flour fortification in Pakistan

With support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, we will help to take Pakistan's large-scale food fortification programs to the next level.

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Children receiving vitamin A supplements as part of Malezi Bora in Kenya.

Related

Nutrition Education

Improving adolescents’ nutrition knowledge.

We support adolescents in becoming advocates for their own nutrition and health with knowledge and skill development.

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Supplementation

Delivering the key micronutrients the body needs to survive and thrive.

We deliver the key micronutrients the body needs to survive and thrive through supplementation, a low-cost and simple solution that helps prevent the most common micronutrient deficiencies.

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All News

African Union’s taskforce adopts strategies supported by Nutrition…

The 14th African Task Force on Food Nutrition Development convened stakeholders to develop actionable solutions and strategies to address Africa’s most pressing nutrition challenges beyond 2025.

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