Lusiana Gultom, Nilda Yulita Siregar, Hanna Sriyanti Saragih
Background: Stunting, defined as height-for-age below -2 SD based on WHO standards, is linked to maternal education, antenatal care, income, knowledge, prevention, and food access. Deliserdang Regency, particularly Dalu Sepuluh Community Health Centre, still has a high stunting prevalence, yet its risk factors remain underexplored. The objective was to analyze the risk factors and prevalence trends of stunting in toddlers within the working area of the Dalu Sepuluh Health Centre, Deliserdang Regency. Method: This cross-sectional analytic study involved 56 toddlers selected through purposive sampling. Maternal and household data were collected using structured questionnaires, interviews, and anthropometric measurements. Data were analyzed using univariate analysis and Chi-square tests. Multivariate logistic regression was not performed due to sparse data distribution and issues of complete or quasi-complete separation, which prevented reliable model estimation. Results: Among 56 toddlers, 28 were stunted and 28 were not stunted. Significant bivariate factors associated with stunting included maternal education, antenatal care frequency, family income, parity, household size, food availability, food source, and maternal knowledge, attitude, and action. Conclusion: Stunting prevention requires interventions focusing on improving maternal knowledge, attitudes, and behaviours, strengthening antenatal care, and ensuring food access and availability. The findings are based on bivariate associations and should be interpreted without assuming independent effects.