<![CDATA[Introduction: Stunting is a major public health problem that affects the growth and development of children under five. Functional foods in child-friendly forms may provide an alternative nutritional approach to support linear growth and stunting prevention. Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the potential of red ginger extract gummy candy as a functional food to support linear growth and stunting prevention among children under five. Method: This quasi-experimental study used intervention and control groups. Children in the intervention group received red ginger extract gummy candy, while those in the control group received a placebo for one month. Changes in height and weight were assessed before and after the intervention. Result: The Shapiro–Wilk test showed that the anthropometric data were not normally distributed (p<0.05). In the intervention group, height increased significantly after the intervention (p=0.005), whereas the change in body weight was not statistically significant (p=0.161). In the control group, neither body weight (p=0.138) nor height (p=0.059) showed statistically significant changes. However, the Mann–Whitney U test showed no statistically significant difference between the intervention and control groups in changes in body weight (p=0.970) or height (p=0.701).. Conslusion: Red ginger gummy candy was associated with a significant increase in height within the intervention group, but the change was not significantly different from the control group. Further studies with larger samples and longer interventions are needed to determine its potential in supporting linear growth.]]>
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