Socioeconomic Determinants of Nutritional Status of Children in Lao PDR: Effects of Household and Community Factors.
Loading...
Date
2011-08
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract
The prevalence of undernutrition among Lao children is among the highest in the region. However, the
determinants of childhood undernutrition in Laos have not been fully analyzed. This paper, using the
dataset of the Lao Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey 3, which is a nationally-representative sample in Laos,
investigated the effects of socioeconomic factors at both household and community levels on the nutritional
status of children. In the estimation, a multilevel linear model with random-intercepts was used for
estimating the determinants of child anthropometric indices. The empirical results revealed that children
from households in southern Laos and from ethnic minority groups were less-nourished. Level of education
of parents, attitudes of mothers towards domestic violence, assets of household, local health services,
and the condition of sanitation and water were considered to be important determinants of nutritional
status of children. The pattern of growth-faltering in children by age was identified. Children aged 12-59
months were less-nourished than those aged 0-11 months. The empirical results were consistent with the
collective household model which incorporates a decision-making process within the household. Since
there is scarce evidence about the predictors of childhood undernutrition in Laos, the findings of this study
will serve as a benchmark for future research.
Description
Keywords
Anthropometry, Child health, Child nutrition disorders, Child nutritional status, Infant health, Infant nutrition disorders, Infant nutritional status, Socioeconomic factors, Laos
Citation
Kamiya Yusuke. Socioeconomic Determinants of Nutritional Status of Children in Lao PDR: Effects of Household and Community Factors. Journal of Health, Population and Nutrition. 2011 Aug; 29(4): 339-348.