Empowering girls, supporting mothers: Bayer’s holistic approach to maternal and child health

For decades, malnutrition in India has proved stubbornly resistant to policy fixes and public spending. The latest National Family Health Scheme data shows that 33% of children under five remain underweight, 35% are stunted, and 20% are emaciated. Anemia affects 55% of women, 53% of pregnant women, 58% of adolescent girls, and 73% of children under five.

These are national figures. In parts of Madhya Pradesh, the situation is worse. In Morena district alone, anemia affects 68% of women, 66% of adolescent girls, and 75% of children under five, pointing to an urgent, localized crisis that needs targeted interventions.

It is in this context that Bayer and The Antara Foundation launched a two-year program across six blocks in Morena and Chhindwara, two of the state's most affected districts. The initiative covers around 800 villages and 191 health sub-centers, and is built on a simple premise: lasting improvements in public health come from strengthening what already exists – government frameworks, community institutions, and the frontline workers embedded in these villages.

Working within the window

The program revolves around the 1,000-day window, the period from the start of pregnancy to a child's second birthday that researchers and health practitioners widely regard as the most consequential stretch of human development. What happens in these 1,000 days shapes outcomes that are difficult, and in some cases impossible, to reverse later. It breaks this window into three distinct stages, each carrying its own nutritional priorities and developmental imperatives.

The first stage is pregnancy. Brain development begins as early as the fourth week of gestation, which means that maternal nutrition cannot wait until a woman is visibly pregnant or until she first visits an antenatal clinic. Iron- and zinc-rich diets are emphasized from the outset, and the program works to ensure that women understand why these nutrients are of importance to them and their growing fetus.

The second stage covers infancy, where the focus shifts to immunity and motor development. Here, exclusive breastfeeding is treated as a non-negotiable rather than a recommendation. Since certain nutrients present in breast milk simply cannot be replicated by formula, the program promotes breastfeeding as a practice. It also guides women on their own diet during this period, recognizing that what a mother eats directly affects the quality of her milk and, by extension, her infant's development.

The third stage is toddlerhood, a phase that is critical for cognitive and speech development and one that demands consistent, nutrient-rich feeding over an extended period. By helping women understand what their child needs at each of these three stages, the program aims to ensure that care is both timely and targeted, rather than generic.

Reaching girls before they become mothers

One of the program’s more distinctive features is its focus on adolescent girls, a group often overlooked in maternal and child health interventions. Through sessions in schools and community spaces, girls are introduced to concepts of nutrition, hygiene, and reproductive health. The aim is to build awareness before they enter their reproductive years.

The logic is preventive. A girl who begins pregnancy, already anemic or undernourished, starts at a disadvantage from day one of the 1,000-day window. Intervening earlier, at 14 or 15 years of age, changes the starting conditions. By treating adolescent health as a prerequisite for maternal health, the program takes a longer-term view than many traditional interventions.

Strengthening the ecosystem 

Rather than creating parallel delivery infrastructure, the initiative works within existing government frameworks like the Integrated Child Development Services and the National Health Mission. The idea is that programs that strengthen public systems are more likely to endure.

At the centre of this effort are frontline workers, ASHA workers, Anganwadi workers, and Auxiliary Nurse Midwives, collectively known as the AAA workforce. They live in or near the communities they serve, speak the local language, and have built trust over years.

The program builds on these strengths, equipping them with better record-keeping tools and standardized training on antenatal care, infant feeding, and adolescent nutrition.

The impact is already visible. In one case, an Anganwadi worker trained under the program identified a severely underweight newborn in a remote village. Recognizing the warning signs, she made an immediate referral. The child was admitted to a Nutrition Rehabilitation Centre and began recovering within weeks. The mother, found to have severe anemia, was put on iron-fortified food and nutritional counselling. Two interventions, both traceable to a single trained observer who knew what to look for and what to do.

Changing behavior, not just practice

While supplements and clinic visits can improve certain indicators, lasting change often requires addressing deeply embedded social practices. In some areas, postpartum women are traditionally confined to enclosed spaces after delivery – a practice that restricts access to food, sunlight, and support at a time when their nutritional needs are highest.

The initiative does not attempt to override these customs by decree. Instead, it focuses on dialogue through home visits, community gatherings, and Village Health and Nutrition Days. These interactions create space for communities to reflect on existing practices and explore alternatives. Practical demonstrations also play a role. Women are shown how to prepare local foods in ways that preserve nutritional value, using ingredients already available at home. 

Designed to scale

The two-year initiative is being positioned as both intervention and test. The main question - can a model built on system strengthening, frontline capacity, and sustained behavior change, deliver outcomes that are measurable, lasting, and replicable? If results from Morena and Chhindwara prove effective, Bayer aims to extend the model to other high-burden regions.

The emphasis is on adaptation, not replication. Each community has its own cultural realities, logistical constraints, and patterns of trust. What can be taken forward is the underlying approach: work with existing systems, invest in frontline workers, focus on the 1,000-day window, and treat behavioral change as a long-term process rather than a short-term campaign.