Association between 23 Correlates Anthropometric Failure among Children: Analisys of 2016 and 2021 National Family Health Surveys in India

Abstract

This study evaluates the associations among 23 factors related to child anthropometric outcomes in children aged 6 to 23 months, using data from the National Family Health Survey (NFHS) rounds 4 (2016) and 5 (2021). The factors examined include maternal characteristics such as body mass index (BMI), height, education level, and pregnancy details; household characteristics like type of residence, waste disposal, drinking water quality, air quality, and poverty status; and child characteristics including age, sex, vaccination status, dietary diversity, and treatments for diarrhea and cough. Anthropometric measures of stunting, wasting, and underweight were assessed using standard deviations for height-forage, weight-for-age, and weight-for-height. Binary logistic regression was used to analyze the strength of associations for both years. The results indicate that maternal characteristics and household poverty are the strongest predictors of child anthropometric failures in 2021. In contrast, factors such as treatment access, vaccination, and sanitation showed weaker associations. The ranking of these factors was similar in both years; however, the association strength for maternal characteristics decreased from 2016 to 2021. Furthermore, there were differences in association strength based on the severity of anthropometric failure outcomes.

DOI: 10.5671/ca.48.3.8