Under-nutrition is caused by many factors :
(a) Infants, pregnant and lactating women feeding malpractice due to lack of knowledge, perception and beliefs. This problem prevails among not educated caregivers, mostly women, who have low access to information, including health related information.
(b) Access to healthy and diverse nutritious foods, iodized salt and vitamin A enriched oil are very limited in some areas as knowledge is lacking among customers and shopkeepers. Even when they are accessible, they are more difficult to afford due to the socio-economic status of the care givers. Moreover, food diversification is not a habit in many Ethiopian homes.
(c) When the immunity system of an infant is weak, due to malnutrition, the infant is more vulnerable to diseases caused by lack of hygiene, health services, clean water and sanitation.