International Journal of Public Health Science (IJPHS)
Vol 9, No 3: September 2020

Nutritional status of under-five children in rural Bangladesh

Liton Chandra Sen (Patuakhali Science and Technology University)
Md. Sabbir Ahmed (Patuakhali Science and Technology University)
Abu Shoeb Md. Touhiduzzaman (Patuakhali Science and Technology University)
Soumitra Mandal (Patuakhali Science and Technology University)
AH Towfique Ahmed (UNICEF Bangladesh)
Sanjit Kumar Das (UNICEF Bangladesh)
Rama Saha (UNICEF Bangladesh)



Article Info

Publish Date
01 Sep 2020

Abstract

A cross-sectional study was carried out in Dumki Upazila of Patuakhali district in Bangladesh to assess the prevalence of stunting, wasting and underweight among the under-five children. Anthropometric measurements were taken from all children, aged 0-59 months in the studied area using wooden height board and digital weight machine. We used WHO Anthro software for analyzing the z scores of the children. A total of 4409 (2296 boys and 2113 girls) under five children were counted for anthropometric analysis.  Regarding the Height-for-age Z-score (HAZ), the study revealed that the prevalence of stunting was 27.10% (95% CI: 25.8-28.5) of the children while 7.80% (95% CI: 7-8.6) were severe stunting. By assessing the Weight-for-height Z-score (WHZ), the study showed that 11.20% (95% CI: 10.3-12.1) were wasting whereas 3% (95% CI 2.5-3.5) were severe wasting. According to Weight-for-age Z-score (WAZ), about 18.20% (95% CI: 17-19.3) were underweight and 4.1% (95% CI: 3.5-4.7) were underweight. The findings of the study show that prevalence of stunting is very high. Focusing on childhood stunting is a high priority, and there should be comprehensive efforts to increase the overall nutritional status of the under-five children in this area.

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Journal Info

Abbrev

IJPHS

Publisher

Subject

Health Professions

Description

International Journal of Public Health Science (IJPHS) is an interdisciplinary journal that publishes material on all aspects of public health science. This IJPHS provides the ideal platform for the discussion of more sophisticated public health research and practice for authors and readers world ...