Mother’s dietary diversity and association with stunting among children <2 years old in a low socio‐economic environment: A case–control study in an urban care setting in Dhaka, Bangladesh

Mothers are often responsible for preparing nutritious foods in their households. However, the quality of mother’s diets is often neglected, which may affect both mother’s and child’s nutrition. Because no single food contains all necessary nutrients, diversity in dietary sources is needed to ensure a quality diet. We aimed to study the association between mother’s dietary diversity and stunting in children <2 years attending Dhaka Hospital of icddr,b, a diarrhoeal disease hospital in Dhaka, Bangladesh. A case–control study (n = 296) was conducted from November 2016 to February 2017. Data were collected from mothers of stunted children <2 years (length‐for‐age z score [LAZ] < −2) as “cases” and nonstunted (LAZ ≥ −1) children <2 years as “controls.” Mothers were asked to recall consumption of 10 defined food groups 24 hr prior to the interview as per Guidelines for Minimum Dietary Diversity for Women. Among the mothers of cases, 58% consumed <5 food groups during the last 24 hr, compared with 45% in control mothers (P = 0.03). Children whose mothers consumed <5 food groups were 1.7 times more likely to be stunted than children whose mothers consumed ≥5 food groups (P = 0.04). Intake of food groups such as pulses, dairy, eggs, and vitamin A rich fruit was higher in control mothers. Proportion of mother’s illiteracy, short stature, monthly family income <BDT 11,480, absence of bank account, and poor sanitation was also found to be higher in stunted group. Further study particularly intervention or longitudinal study to see the causality of mother’s dietary diversity with child stunting is recommended.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/148421/1/mcn12665.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/148421/2/mcn12665_am.pd

Risk factors associated with overweight and obesity among urban school children and adolescents in Bangladesh: a case–control study

Background Childhood obesity has become an emerging urban health problem in urban cities in Bangladesh, particularly in affluent families. Risk factors for obesity in this context have not been explored yet. The objective of this study was to identify the risk factors associated with overweight and obesity among school children and adolescents in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Methods From October through November 2007, we conducted a case–control study among children aged 10–15 years in seven schools in Dhaka. We assessed body mass index (weight in kg/height in sq. meter) to identify the cases (overweight/obese) and controls (healthy/normal weight) following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention age and sex specific growth chart. We used a structured questionnaire to collect demographic information and respondent’s exposure to several risk factors such as daily physical activity at home and in school, hours spent on computer games and television watching, maternal education level and parents’ weight and height. Results We enrolled 198 children: 99 cases, 99 controls. Multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that having at least one overweight parent (OR = 2.8, p = 0.001) and engaging in sedentary activities for >4 hours a day (OR = 2.0, p = 0.02) were independent risk factors for childhood overweight and/or obesity while exercising ≥ 30 minutes a day at home was a protective factor (OR = 0.4, p = 0.02). There were no significant associations between childhood overweight and sex, maternal education or physical activity at school. Conclusion Having overweight parents along with limited exercise and high levels of sedentary activities lead to obesity among school children in urban cities in Bangladesh. Public health programs are needed to increase awareness on risk factors for overweight and obesity among children and adolescents in order to reduce the future burden of obesity-associated chronic diseases.</p

First Private Sector Midwifery Education initiative in Bangladesh: Experience from the BRAC University

In an attempt to further improve maternal and newborn health in Bangladesh, the BRAC University has started a three-year diploma in midwifery education programme, with the goal of ensuring availability of at least one midwife in all the 4,500 unions of the country by 2030, starting from the hard-to-reach under-served areas. The programme used a ‘hub and spoke’ model, where the BRAC University is the hub and six NGOs working in the rural under-served areas are the spokes, termed as academic sites. In addition, a new academic site was established in 2014 by the BRAC University in urban, Dhaka through its newly established Department of Midwifery and Nursing. The urban academic site, or spoke, is the Department of Midwifery and Nursing at the BRAC University. The curriculum, which has been developed and is being followed, is of international standards and is consistent with the national curriculum. The first cohort of 180 students, second cohort of 170 students, and third cohort of 60 students started their classes, respectively, from January 2013, July 2014, and January 2015. There are 52 faculty members. The programme is expected to create a cadre of midwives on the one hand, and test the effectiveness of a retention strategy for keeping the midwives in hard-to-reach under-served areas on the other hand. Getting faculty and students for the programme has been a challenge in the absence of a full time midwifery professional and established career for them in the country. This paper describes the approach that the BRAC University has taken, the challenges faced and the ways adopted to of tackle them. It is expected that the programme will improve the situation of maternal and neonatal health in Bangladesh, significantly

Determinants of Household Dietary Diversity in Bangladesh

Dietary diversity is considered crucial for household welfare and also for carrying out other development activities The emerging interest in household dietary diversity against dietary quantity presents an opportunity to estimate household food security Based on secondary data probit regression model was used to estimate the determinants of household dietary diversity in Bangladesh The result suggests that household size literacy of household head total amount of land married household head total amount of remittance received and income of household head were major determinants in attainment of high dietary diversity Government policies and intervention programs targeting the above variables may improve household dietary diversity which in turn may improve household food securit