209
Views
16
CrossRef citations to date
0
Altmetric
RESEARCH PAPERS

Prevalence of undernutrition among children (5–12 years) belonging to three communities residing in a similar habitat in North Bengal, India

&
Pages 199-217 | Received 28 Jan 2009, Accepted 15 Sep 2009, Published online: 06 Dec 2009
 

Abstract

Background: In India, children show a high incidence of undernutrition and constitute a highly susceptible group.

Aim: The present cross-sectional study assesses the prevalence of undernutrition among school-going children belonging to three communities in the same geographical and ecological habitat.

Subjects and methods: A total of 906 boys and 964 girls in the age group of 5–12 years and belonging to the Rajbanshi, Tea-labourer and Bengalee Muslim communities residing in North Bengal, India were included. Height-for-age, weight-for-age and weight-for-height were used to evaluate their nutritional status and these were compared with the NCHS reference data. The statistical methods used included chi-square and multinomial logistic regression analysis.

Results: There were wide variations in stunting, underweight and wasting among the children of the three ethnic communities. Significant gender differences were observed between and within the communities. Children from Tea-labourer and Bengali Muslim were more affected in comparison to the Rajbanshi. Multinomial logistic regression analysis showed that gender, ethnic community and number of siblings are significantly associated with undernutrition. Family size does not seem to be associated with undernutrition.

Conclusion: There is a high prevalence of undernutrition among the children. Urgent nutritional intervention is necessary to ameliorate their nutritional status.

Declaration of interest: This study has been supported by a financial grant of the University Grants Commission, Govt of India [UGC-Ref. No. 129/(NET-June 2007)]. The authors gratefully acknowledge the help and cooperation of the authorities of the 16 schools of Phansidewa block where the data were collected. The help of the Department of Anthropology, University of North Bengal is also acknowledged.

Log in via your institution

Log in to Taylor & Francis Online

PDF download + Online access
  • 48 hours access to article PDF & online version
  • Article PDF can be downloaded
  • Article PDF can be printed
USD 65.00 Add to cart
* Local tax will be added as applicable

Related Research

People also read lists articles that other readers of this article have read.

Recommended articles lists articles that we recommend and is powered by our AI driven recommendation engine.

Cited by lists all citing articles based on Crossref citations.
Articles with the Crossref icon will open in a new tab.