Child malnutrition in Bangladesh: an evidence from multiple indicators cluster survey

Abstract

Bangladesh has made significant progress in reducing child malnutrition over the years. However, malnutrition remains a considerable challenge in the country, particularly among children under the age of five years. This study aimed to determine the risk factors involved with child malnutrition (i.e. underweight, stunting and wasting) among children under five in Bangladesh. We examined the potential risk factors of child underweight, stunting and wasting using data based on multiple indicators cluster survey (MICS) conducted in Bangladesh in 2019. The data included 18,696 children (under the age of five years) respectively from 64,400 households. Binary logistic regression models were used to evaluate the potential risk factors associated with malnutrition in children. About 27% of children under age five are stunted (short for their age), 10% are wasted (thin for their height), and 22% are underweight in Bangladesh. The most critical risk factors of child malnutrition in Bangladesh were the mother’s education, mother’s age at birth, place of residence and wealth quantile.