Prevalence of child malnutrition and household socioeconomic deprivation: A case study of marginalized district in Punjab, Pakistan

Abstract

Better socioeconomic status and well-being in households decrease malnutrition and health risks in children. The objective of the present study is to assess the current nutritional status of pre-school children and to correlate the prevalence of malnutrition with Household Deprivation Status (HDS) in one of the deprived districts of the Punjab province in Pakistan. Using primary data collected from 384 households through a proportional purposive random sampling technique, this study calculates the z-scores of weight-for-age (WAZ), weight-for-height (WHZ), and height-for-age (HAZ). The study has used a cut-off point which is -2 standard deviations below the median of the WHO/NCHS reference population for each anthropometric indicator. The results indicate that the underweight, stunting, and wasting prevalence rates are 46.1%, 34.83%, and 15.49% respectively in district Rahimyar Khan. Also, the expected tendency of malnutrition is worst for HDS-1 and HDS-2 which are the most deprived segments of the population. As the household shifts from HDS-1 to HDS-2 and further to HDS-3, the rates of stunting (HAZ) and underweight (WAZ) decreases but wasting (WHZ) does not. The study concludes that the high prevalence of malnutrition in the district is correlated with overall socio-economic deprivation.

Key Challenges to Optimal Therapeutic Coverage and Maternal Utilization of CMAM Program in Rural Southern Pakistan: A Qualitative Exploratory Study

“…Not aligned well with local socio-cultural realities, the short-term global technical solution in the form of RUTFs and CMAM was implemented "under neoliberal governments and facilitated an increasingly inequitable economy with minimal state involvement in an increasingly individualistic social environment" [54] (p. 16). However, the permanent, long-term, sustainable solution to maternal child undernutrition lies in females' socioeconomic emancipation, and their health or nutrition literacy [55][56][57][58][59]. In addition, the inclusion of training of medical staff on respectful care is imperative.…”

Distance to Healthcare Facility and Lady Health Workers’ Visits Reduce Malnutrition in under Five Children: A Case Study of a Disadvantaged Rural District in Pakistan

“…There is evidence that amongst the richer and richest families, the prevalence of malnutrition was the lowest [40,41]. Some recent studies from the same region also show that household socioeconomic deprivation (HDS) strongly contributed to child malnutrition, and malnutrition decreased with a decrease in deprivation status [42][43][44][45][46][47].…”

Comparison of Different Nutritional Screening Approaches and the Determinants of Malnutrition in Under-Five Children in a Marginalized District of Punjab Province, Pakistan

“…Studies in India and Pakistan used the household deprivation status index, which depicts the socioeconomic status (SES). We followed those studies to construct the SES index [ 14 , 15 , 16 ].…”