Association of Low Birth Weight with Malnutrition in Children under Five Years in Bangladesh: Do Mother's Education, Socio Economic Status, and Birth Interval Matter?
Background Malnutrition in children under five years remains a significant problem in Bangladesh, despite substantial socio economic progress and a decade of interventions aimed at improving it. Although several studies have been conducted to identify the important risk factors of malnutrition, none of them assess the role of low birth weight (LBW) despite its high prevalence (36% This study examines the association between LBW and malnutrition using data from the Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey (BDHS) 2011 and provides practical guidelines for improving nutritional status of children. Methods Malnutrition in children is measured in terms of their height for age, weight for height, and weight for age. Children whose Z scores for either of these indices are below two standard deviations 2SD) from median of WHO's reference population are considered as stunted, wasted or underweight, respectively. The association between malnutrition and LBW was investigated by calculating adjusted risk ratio (RR) which controls for potential confounders such as child's age and sex, mother's education and height, length of preceding birth interval, access to food, area of residence, household socio economic status. Adjusted RR was calculated using both Cochran Mantel Haenszel approach and multivariable logistic regression models controlling for confounder. Results The prevalence of malnutrition was markedly higher in children with LBW than those with normal birth weights (stunting: 51% vs 39% wasting: 25% vs 14% and underweight: 52% vs 33% While controlling for the known risk factors, children with LBW had significantly increased risk of becoming malnourished compared to their counter part with RR 1.23 (95% CI:1.16 1.30) 1.71 (95% CI:1.53 1.92) and 1.47 (95% CI: 1.38 1.56) for stunting, wasting and underweight, respectively. The observed associations were not modified by factors known to reduce the prevalence of malnutrition, such as higher education of mother, better household socio economic conditions and longer birth interval. Conclusions Higher education of mother, better household socio economic conditions and prolonged birth intervals alone are not sufficient in bringing about substantial reductions in prevalence of child malnutrition in Bangladesh. Targeted interventions should be designed to reduce prevalence of LBW in addition to improving mother's education and other socio demographic conditions.
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