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Stunting and Its Determinants among Children Aged 6-59 Months in Northern Ethiopia: A Cross-Sectional Study
Shiferaw Abeway1, Bereket Gebremichael2, Rajalakshmi Murugan2
1Amhara Regional Health Bureau, Bahardar, Ethiopia.
Insights
Child stunting is a major problem in Ethiopia, affecting over half of young children. Key factors include low birth weight, female sex, older age, and inadequate maternal care and feeding practices.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Public Health
- Nutrition Science
Background:
- Stunting in children under five signifies chronic undernutrition during critical early development stages.
- This study addresses the prevalence and contributing factors of stunting in young children in central Ethiopia.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine the magnitude of stunting among children aged 6-59 months in central Ethiopia.
- To identify factors associated with stunting in this population.
Main Methods:
- A community-based cross-sectional study involved 410 children aged 6-59 months.
- Data were collected using structured questionnaires and anthropometric measurements analyzed with WHO 2006 standards.
- Bivariate and multivariable logistic regression identified stunting predictors (p < 0.05).
Main Results:
- The overall prevalence of stunting was 52.4% (95% CI: 47.6-57.2).
- Factors positively associated with stunting included female sex, age 25-59 months, low birth weight (<2.5 kg), lack of maternal antenatal care (ANC) visits, and mistimed complementary feeding.
- Maternal education showed a negative association with stunting.
Conclusions:
- Stunting is highly prevalent in the study region, indicating a significant public health issue.
- Low birth weight, female sex, older age, delayed complementary feeding, and insufficient maternal ANC visits are key risk factors.
- Interventions targeting these factors are crucial to reduce chronic malnutrition in children.
Background:
Stunting reflects chronic undernutrition during the most critical periods of growth and development in early life. The study was aimed at assessing the magnitude of stunting and associated factors among children aged 6-59 month in central Ethiopia.
Methods:
A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 410 children aged between 6 and 59 months. Systematic random sampling technique was employed to select study participants. Interviewer-administered structured questionnaire was used to collect data. The data were entered using EPI INFO version 3.5.1, and analysis was done by SPSS version 21 and ENA, 2007 software for anthropometric calculation. World Health Organization standard 2006 was used to analyse anthropometric data. Bivariate and multivariable logistic regression analyses were also carried out to identify predictors of stunting. Statistical significance was declared at p < 0.05 and 95% CI.
Results:
Overall magnitude of stunting was 52.4 (95% CI: 47.6-57.2). Being female (AOR: 2.8, 95% CI: 1.503-5.099), belonging to age group of 25-59 months (AOR: 4, 95% CI: 1.881-8.424) and birth weight of <2.5 kg (AOR: 5, 95% CI: 1.450-17.309), mothers' lack of ANC visits (AOR: 3.2 95% CI: 1.40-7.10), and mistimed complementary feeding initiation (AOR: 2.4, 95% CI: 1.266-4.606) were positively associated with child stunting, whereas educational status of the mother (AOR: 0.01, 95% CI: 0.001-0.063) showed negative association.
Conclusion:
Stunting was a highly prevalent problem in the study area. Low weight at birth, female sex, older age, mistimed initiation of complimentary feeding, and mothers' lack of ANC visit were found to have significant relation with children's chronic malnutrition. Thus, interventions shall effectively address those factors to alleviate the problem.
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