Undernutrition in older children and adolescents in peri-urban Zambia
BackgroundAdolescents make up roughly a quarter of the population in Zambia; however, most nutrition-related programming is targeted at the under-five population. Understanding the scale of undernutrition in older children and adolescents is fundamental to alleviating food insecurity and addressing...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Frontiers Media S.A.
2023-09-01
|
| Series: | Frontiers in Public Health |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2023.1251768/full |
| _version_ | 1797673996446072832 |
|---|---|
| author | Shela Sridhar Janella S. Kang Isabel Madzorera Ethan Zulu Joyce Makasa Sally Bell Cross Davidson H. Hamer Davidson H. Hamer Davidson H. Hamer |
| author_facet | Shela Sridhar Janella S. Kang Isabel Madzorera Ethan Zulu Joyce Makasa Sally Bell Cross Davidson H. Hamer Davidson H. Hamer Davidson H. Hamer |
| author_sort | Shela Sridhar |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | BackgroundAdolescents make up roughly a quarter of the population in Zambia; however, most nutrition-related programming is targeted at the under-five population. Understanding the scale of undernutrition in older children and adolescents is fundamental to alleviating food insecurity and addressing undernutrition across all age groups.MethodsA cross-sectional survey was performed in four low-income, peri-urban compounds in Chilanga District which included anthropometric measurements of children between ages 6 months-19 years and a household-level diet diversity and food security questionnaire. Wasting was used for children under 5 and thinness for children 5–19 years. Descriptive analysis and multivariate logistic regression were conducted to quantify the prevalence and distribution of malnutrition and understand the impact of food security.ResultsWe surveyed 393 households and 1,004 children between the ages of 6 months and 19 years. Children aged 6–9 years had the highest prevalence of severe thinness (5.2%) and adolescents (10–19 years) had the highest rates of moderate thinness (6.5%). Across all age groups, more than 75% of children were in households that worried about running out of food in the previous month. 24.9% of adolescents and 28.4% of older children were in households were more likely to go a whole day without eating compared to 16.9% of children under 5.ConclusionOur survey indicated that malnutrition in adolescents and older children living in Chilanga district was comparable to those under 5. Interventions to address undernutrition must be targeted at older children and adolescents in order to ameliorate this burden. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T21:53:48Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-7abd1bd7e2664126af71418df7fcbad5 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2296-2565 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T21:53:48Z |
| publishDate | 2023-09-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Public Health |
| spelling | doaj.art-7abd1bd7e2664126af71418df7fcbad52023-09-26T06:09:53ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Public Health2296-25652023-09-011110.3389/fpubh.2023.12517681251768Undernutrition in older children and adolescents in peri-urban ZambiaShela Sridhar0Janella S. Kang1Isabel Madzorera2Ethan Zulu3Joyce Makasa4Sally Bell Cross5Davidson H. Hamer6Davidson H. Hamer7Davidson H. Hamer8Division of Global Health Equity, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA, United StatesDepartment of Child, Youth, and Family Studies, College of Education and Human Sciences, University of Nebraska - Lincoln, Lincoln, NE, United StatesDivision of Community Health Sciences, School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, United StatesRight to Care, Lusaka, ZambiaI4life, Lusaka, ZambiaI4life, Lusaka, ZambiaDepartment of Global Health, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA, United StatesSection of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Boston University Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, Boston, MA, United StatesFriedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, Tufts University, Boston, MA, United StatesBackgroundAdolescents make up roughly a quarter of the population in Zambia; however, most nutrition-related programming is targeted at the under-five population. Understanding the scale of undernutrition in older children and adolescents is fundamental to alleviating food insecurity and addressing undernutrition across all age groups.MethodsA cross-sectional survey was performed in four low-income, peri-urban compounds in Chilanga District which included anthropometric measurements of children between ages 6 months-19 years and a household-level diet diversity and food security questionnaire. Wasting was used for children under 5 and thinness for children 5–19 years. Descriptive analysis and multivariate logistic regression were conducted to quantify the prevalence and distribution of malnutrition and understand the impact of food security.ResultsWe surveyed 393 households and 1,004 children between the ages of 6 months and 19 years. Children aged 6–9 years had the highest prevalence of severe thinness (5.2%) and adolescents (10–19 years) had the highest rates of moderate thinness (6.5%). Across all age groups, more than 75% of children were in households that worried about running out of food in the previous month. 24.9% of adolescents and 28.4% of older children were in households were more likely to go a whole day without eating compared to 16.9% of children under 5.ConclusionOur survey indicated that malnutrition in adolescents and older children living in Chilanga district was comparable to those under 5. Interventions to address undernutrition must be targeted at older children and adolescents in order to ameliorate this burden.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2023.1251768/fulladolescentmalnutritionundernutritionadolescent malnutritionZambia malnutritionwasting |
| spellingShingle | Shela Sridhar Janella S. Kang Isabel Madzorera Ethan Zulu Joyce Makasa Sally Bell Cross Davidson H. Hamer Davidson H. Hamer Davidson H. Hamer Undernutrition in older children and adolescents in peri-urban Zambia Frontiers in Public Health adolescent malnutrition undernutrition adolescent malnutrition Zambia malnutrition wasting |
| title | Undernutrition in older children and adolescents in peri-urban Zambia |
| title_full | Undernutrition in older children and adolescents in peri-urban Zambia |
| title_fullStr | Undernutrition in older children and adolescents in peri-urban Zambia |
| title_full_unstemmed | Undernutrition in older children and adolescents in peri-urban Zambia |
| title_short | Undernutrition in older children and adolescents in peri-urban Zambia |
| title_sort | undernutrition in older children and adolescents in peri urban zambia |
| topic | adolescent malnutrition undernutrition adolescent malnutrition Zambia malnutrition wasting |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2023.1251768/full |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT shelasridhar undernutritioninolderchildrenandadolescentsinperiurbanzambia AT janellaskang undernutritioninolderchildrenandadolescentsinperiurbanzambia AT isabelmadzorera undernutritioninolderchildrenandadolescentsinperiurbanzambia AT ethanzulu undernutritioninolderchildrenandadolescentsinperiurbanzambia AT joycemakasa undernutritioninolderchildrenandadolescentsinperiurbanzambia AT sallybellcross undernutritioninolderchildrenandadolescentsinperiurbanzambia AT davidsonhhamer undernutritioninolderchildrenandadolescentsinperiurbanzambia AT davidsonhhamer undernutritioninolderchildrenandadolescentsinperiurbanzambia AT davidsonhhamer undernutritioninolderchildrenandadolescentsinperiurbanzambia |