Published Paper Details:

Childhood wasting is a serious public health concern in India. Thus, there was a strong need to identify determinants of stunting and analyse transition in its determinants over a period. National Family and Health Surveys (NFHS) are extensive, multi-phased surveys covering all states/Union territories of India. Primary analysis included children (<5y) from each NFHS surveys; NFHS 2 (N= 5,313), NFHS 3 (12,960) and NFHS 4 (48,265) respectively. Children with reported wasting were 14.1% , 19.1% and 21% in NFHS 2, 3 and 4 respectively. During NFHS 2, higher odds of wasting were Child's age in months (OR: 0.412, p < 0.001), gender of the child (OR: 0.672, p < 0.01) and birth order (OR: 2.942, p < 0.01). During NFHS 3, significant factors affecting wasting are Child's age in months (OR: 1.622, p < 0.001), Gender of the child (OR: 0.651, p < 0.001) and Maternal BMI (OR: 0.619, p < 0.05). During NFHS 4, the higher odds of wasting were child's age in months (OR: 1.624, p < 0.001), size of child at birth (OR: 1.586, p < 0.001) and the Number of Antenatal visits (OR: 1.463, p < 0.001). Programs and policies already in place need to be enhanced, and a focus has to be placed on factors that have consistently emerged over the past 20 years as indicators of childhood wasting.