Newborn low birth weight: do socio-economic inequality still persist in India? (original) (raw)
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Clinical Epidemiology and Global Health, 2020
Introduction: Despite impressive progress, socio-economic inequalities in infant mortality persist in India. Therefore, the study determines the change in percentage contribution of different factors to total economic inequalities for infant mortality in India from 2005-06 to 2105-16. Methods: The study used the National Family Health Survey to carve out the results. Descriptive, bivariate, and binary logistic regression were used. Further, Income-related inequality in infant mortality was quantified by the concentration index (CI) and the concentration curve (CC). The study used Wagstaff’s decomposition analysis to decompose the concentration index. The effective sample size for the study was 51,555 for NFHS 2005-06 and 259,627 for 2015-16. Results: The study found that economic inequality in infant mortality has increased over the two survey periods. The value of the concentration index increased from -0.14 in 2005-06 to - 0.18 in 2015-16. The increase in inequality in infant mortality is higher in rural India than in urban India. Mother’s education and open defecation contributed half (52%) of the inequality in infant mortality during 2015-16. Conclusion: Recommendations concerning the WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene) actions should be emphasized. The focus should be on eradicating the practice of open defecation, construction of latrines, and safe disposal practice of feces. There is also a need to provide mass education regarding nutrition and health, along with focusing on the correlates that aim at improving female’s education.
Socio-economic and nutritional determinants of low birth weight in India
North American Journal of Medical Sciences , 2014
Background: Low birth weight (LBW) is an important risk factor for childhood morbidity and mortality, consequently an important public health concern. Aim: This study aims to identify significant socio-economic and nutritional determinants associated with LBW in India. Materials and Methods: Data from 2005 to 2006 National Family Health Survey-3 (NFHS-3) of India was analyzed. A total of 20,946 women (15-49 years) who gave birth at least once 5 years preceding the NFHS-3 were included in this study. Infant's LBW (<2500 grams) as outcome variable was examined in association with all independent predictors as infant's sex, maternal household wealth status, caste, age, education, body mass index (BMI), stature, anemia level, parity, inter-pregnancy interval, antenatal care received, and living place. Results: Almost 20% of the infants were born with LBW. Mother's low education level, BMI <18.5, short stature (height <145 centimeters) and lack of antenatal visits (<4 visits) were significant predictors of LBW. Male gender has a protective effect against LBW. Conclusion: Maternal education, nutritional status and antenatal care received are key determinants that need to be addressed to reduce prevalence of LBW in India. Continue implementation of multifaceted health promotion interventions are needed to address these factors effectively.
Infant and child mortality in India: trends in inequalities across economic groups
This paper examines the trends in economic inequalities with respect to infant and child mortality in India using three rounds of the Indian National Family Health Survey conducted in 1992–1993, 1998–1999, and 2005–2006. The paper uses concentration index, and pooled discrete-time survival regression model to examine the aforementioned trends and regional patterns. The findings suggest a decreasing trend in economic inequality in infant mortality but an upward trend in economic inequality in child mortality in India. Economic inequalities in infant mortality have narrowed in the southern region, whereas they have widened in the western region and risen in the northern region. However, mixed trends in concentration indices were found in the different regions of India in the case of child mortality.
Regional models assessing region-specific determinants of low birth weight in India
Current Science, 2019
Low birth weight (LBW) is defined as birth weight less than 2.5 kg. LBW infants remain at a relatively higher risk of mortality than those with normal birth weight. This is still a major public health problem in developing countries like India. Data from the third round of the National Family Health Survey were used for this study. The multivariable logistic regression model demonstrated a significant association between the reporting of birth weight, and education level and financial status. Furthermore, as the rate of parity increased, the odds for reporting of birth weights decreased in the northern, central and eastern regions of India.
Determinants of low birth weight in India: An investigation from the National Family Health Survey
American Journal of Human Biology, 2019
This study aimed to estimate the change in prevalence of low birth weight (LBW) over the last decade in India and to identify its associated factors-biological, demographic, socioeconomic , and programmatic. Methods: We used the data from the National Family Health Survey of 2005-2006 (NFHS-3) and 2015-2016 (NFHS-4). The sample of this study included 11 300 children from NFHS-3 and 99 894 from NFHS-4 data; all these children were the last full-term singleton live-births, born within the last 3 years prior to the survey. Results: In India, the prevalence of LBW has significantly declined from 20.4% (95%CI 19.4-21.4) to 16.4% (95% CI 16.1-16.8
PLOS ONE
Background and objective Low birth weight (LBW) is a major risk factor of child mortality and morbidity during infancy (0–3 years) and early childhood (3–8 years) in low and lower-middle-income countries, including Bangladesh. LBW is a vital public health concern in Bangladesh. The objective of the research was to investigate the socioeconomic inequality in the prevalence of LBW among singleton births and identify the significantly associated determinants of singleton LBW in Bangladesh. Materials and methods The data utilized in this research was derived from the latest nationally representative Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey, 2017–18, and included a total of 2327 respondents. The concentration index (C-index) and concentration curve were used to investigate the socioeconomic inequality in LBW among the singleton newborn babies. Additionally, an adjusted binary logistic regression model was utilized for calculating adjusted odds ratio and p-value (<0.05) to identify the...
Ceylon Medical Journal, 2020
Birth weight is a crucial indicator of mothers and infants nutritional status. It determines a newborn's likelihood of survival, their growth and their psychological development. This study examines the socioeconomic inequalities of low birth weight in Sri Lanka using the first island-wide Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) conducted in 2016. Nearly 17% of babies are reported as low birth weight (LBW) and the prevalence has stagnated for nearly two decades in Sri Lanka. LBW is indicative of inequalities in particular population subgroups. There is a lack of research on LBW inequalities and the contribution of different socioeconomic determinants to these inequalities in Sri Lanka. A stepwise multivariate linear regression, health inequality measures and decomposition method are used to examine inequalities in LBW. Maternal body mass index (BMI), height, antenatal visits, birth interval, wealth and ethnicity are significantly associated with mean birth weight. Findings reveal that inequalities exist, where LBW is concentrated among the poorest households. The decomposition results highlight maternal BMI, education and ethnicity as major contributing factors for such inequalities. These findings suggest prioritising the nutritional needs of mothers and relevant interventions to address inequalities in birth weight to reduce the stagnated LBW in Sri Lanka.