Malnutrition refers to deficiencies or excesses in nutrient intake, imbalance of essential nutrients or impaired nutrient utilization. The double burden of malnutrition consists of both undernutrition and overweight and obesity, as well as diet-related noncommunicable diseases.

Famine is an IPC classification at the area level. The IPC defines Famine as a situation in which at least one in five (or 20 percent of the) households have an extreme lack of food and face starvation and destitution, resulting in extremely critical levels of acute malnutrition and death. In this phase, prevalence of acute malnutrition in children under five reaches or exceeds 30 percent, households destitute, and death, measured in the form of excess mortality is prevalent (at least 2 deaths per 10,000 people/day).

Catastrophe can only be classified at household level. In this phase, household members experience an extreme lack of food and exhaustion of coping capacities; and face starvation and a significantly increased risk of acute malnutrition and death. Households may be classified in IPC Phase 5 (Catastrophe) even if the area is not classified in IPC Phase 5 (Famine). The latter is the case when less than 20 percent of the population is experiencing IPC Phase 5 (Catastrophe) conditions and/or when malnutrition and/or mortality levels have not (or not yet) reached Famine thresholds

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