Child undernutrition remains a major public health concern in India, particularly among children living below the poverty line (BPL). Adequate daily nutritional intake is essential for healthy physical growth, cognitive development, and immunity; however, persistent poverty, food insecurity, and limited dietary diversity continue to adversely affect child health outcomes. The present study examines the impact of daily nutritional intake on the health outcomes of children living below the poverty line in India using secondary data from the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5, 2019–21), the latest nationally representative dataset on child nutrition and health. Daily nutritional intake is assessed through indicators such as breastfeeding practices, complementary feeding, dietary diversity, and adequacy of diet, while health outcomes are measured using anthropometric indicators, micronutrient deficiency, and morbidity patterns. NFHS-5 data show that 63.7% of infants aged 0–5 months are exclusively breastfed, but only 45.9% of children aged 6–8 months receive appropriate complementary feeding. Diet quality further declines with age, as just 23% of children aged 6–23 months receive minimum dietary diversity and only 11.3% receive an adequate diet. These nutritional inadequacies are reflected in poor health outcomes, with 35.5% of children under five being stunted, 19.3% wasted, and 32.1% underweight. Additionally, 67.1% of children aged 6–59 months are anaemic, while 7.3% experience diarrhoea and 2.8% suffer from acute respiratory infections. The findings reveal a strong association between inadequate daily nutritional intake and adverse health outcomes among BPL children. The study emphasizes the need for poverty-sensitive nutrition strategies that prioritize consistent, diverse, and nutritionally adequate daily diets through strengthened interventions such as ICDS, Poshan Abhiyaan, and nutrition education initiatives.