In emergency responses around the world, Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) teams use a simple tool to quickly diagnose patients suffering from malnutrition: a color-coded bracelet that measures a patient’s mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC).
On the MUAC measuring band, a reading of green indicates normal circumference, yellow shows a risk of malnutrition, orange means moderate malnutrition, and red signifies severe malnutrition and a risk of death.
On Sunday, January 26, 2025, the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) in New York City will features the MUAC bracelet in the exhibition Pirouette: Turning Points in Design.
The exhibition will feature “influential objects from MoMA’s collection—furniture, electronics, symbols, and more—that have shaped both the design field and the world from the 1930s to today.”
What is malnutrition?
Malnutrition is defined as the inability to take in enough food, or to fully utilize the food you eat, and is one of the single greatest threats to global public health. It is particularly devastating for children because their developing immune systems can be severely impaired by acute cases, making them more vulnerable to other diseases. Illnesses such as diarrhea, measles, cholera, HIV, and tuberculosis can exacerbate the risk of malnutrition.
How does MUAC measurement help MSF respond?
The use of the MUAC measurement tool to screen for malnutrition helps MSF quickly categorize patients and start them on the appropriate treatment, including ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF) such as Plumpy’Nut, which is a fortified and sweetened peanut paste.
Where is malnutrition on the rise?
According to the latest Global Report on Food Crises, nearly 282 million people across 59 countries and territories faced severe acute hunger in 2023—an increase of 24 million since 2022, when numbers were already alarmingly high. This surge is caused by sharp deteriorations in food security, which is often linked with conflict, climate change, and other contextual factors limiting people’s access to food. This is the fourth consecutive year of strikingly high food insecurity across the world, with some of the world’s biggest crises taking place in Sudan, Gaza, and Nigeria.
A member preview event for Pirouette: Turning Points in Design will take place at MOMA in New York on Friday, January 24 from 10:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. and on Saturday, January 25 from 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Learn more about the event here.
