OPEN DEFECATION BEHAVIOR AND WATER SANITATION AS STUNTING RISK FACTORS

Stunting is a condition where the growth of children under 5 years is stunted, due to chronic malnutrition which makes them too short for their age. Kubu Raya is the regency with the highest number of stunting cases in 2022 with a prevalence of 27.6%. The priority location in this study is the Sui Ambawang area, with a prevalence of 12.3%. With the aim of knowing the relationship between open defecation behavior and water sanitation as a risk factor for stunting in Kubu Raya Regency in toddlers. This type of research is analytic observational with a case-control research design. The research was carried out from September to December 2022. It consisted of 3 village areas, namely Central Java, East Mega and Sungai Malaya. Sampling in this study was carried out by purposive sampling. The number of samples obtained was 136 respondents (68 cases and 68 controls). The research instrument used was a questionnaire sheet and an observation sheet in the form of the KoboCollect application. Data were analyzed with 2 steps of analysis, namely univariate and bivariate analysis. The results showed that there was a relationship between open defecation behavior and stunting (p=0.027). Water sanitation is also a factor related to stunting (p=0.006). It is suggested to the Kubu Raya District Health Office and the Sui Ambawang Community Health Center to intensify collaborative interventions that put more emphasis on the determinants of stunting, namely open defecation and water sanitation which are still the causes of stunting in Sui Ambawang.