RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MOTHER'S KNOWLEDGE AND THE INCIDENCE OF STUNTING IN TODDLERS IN THE WORK AREA OF THE COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER OF CIREBON CITY

Stunting is a condition where children do not have a height that
corresponds to their age. This is caused by various factors such as insufficient
nutrition and a lack of parental knowledge about health and nutrition. Based on
data from the Puskesmas Pesisir in Cirebon City, in February 2025, there were
73 toddlers experiencing stunting. The majority of mothers of these toddlers had
limited knowledge about good parenting practices and nutrition principles, which
can increase the risk of stunting in toddlers. This study aims to determine the
relationship between maternal knowledge and the incidence of stunting in
toddlers in the Puskesmas Pesisir area of Cirebon City.
This research design uses a cross-sectional approach. The research
instrument used is a questionnaire sheet. The sample size is 73 respondents. This
research was conducted in the Work Area of the Pesisir Community Health
Center in Cirebon City. The sampling technique in this study is total sampling
using univariate and bivariate analysis with the chi-square test.
The results of this study indicate that, maternal knowledge regarding
stunting is mostly in the poor category, namely as many as 37 respondents
(50.7%). In addition, most of the stunting incidents are included in the short
category, namely as many as 63 toddlers (86.3%). From the results of statistical
tests using the chi-square test obtained p-value = 0.004 ≤ 0.05. This means, Ho is
rejected with Ha accepted indicating a significant relationship between maternal
knowledge and the incidence of stunting in toddlers in the Working Area of the
Pesisir Health Center, Cirebon City.
The results of this study are expected to increase mothers' knowledge in
preventing stunting and supporting child development.
Keywords : Knowledge, Stunting, Toddlers
Bibliography : 49 (2017-2025)