This cross-sectional, community-based, household survey was carried out in Gaza City, Palestine
during the first half of 2009 to study the nutritional status of Palestinian preschool children aged 2–5 years under
blockade. The response rate was 95.2% from a total sample of 770. The majority (94.4%) of households faced
difficulties accessing food, the main cause was the siege and the shortage of food products; and the majority
(85.5%) were food insecure households. Just over 50% of the preschoolers were anaemic, 26.8% of those who
had a stool test had parasitic infections, and 15.0 were stunted. Food insecurity was the first predictor of stunting
and underweight, and malnutrition indicators indicate the worst situation in the Gaza Strip for several decades.