Investing in Adolescent Girls’ Nutrition in Bangladesh : Situation Analysis of Trends and Ways Forward
Adolescents are among the age groups most vulnerable to malnutrition and their situation requires priority attention. However, information on adolescent nutrition in Bangladesh is limited. Using data from the Food Security and Nutrition Surveillanc...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Working Paper |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
World Bank, Washington, DC
2019
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/305841566453472455/Investing-in-Adolescent-Girls-Nutrition-in-Bangladesh-Situation-Analysis-of-Trends-and-Ways-Forward http://hdl.handle.net/10986/32322 |
| Summary: | Adolescents are among the age groups
most vulnerable to malnutrition and their situation requires
priority attention. However, information on adolescent
nutrition in Bangladesh is limited. Using data from the Food
Security and Nutrition Surveillance Project (FSNSP), we
examined the nutritional situation of adolescent girls
including regional and urban-rural patterns in
undernutrition and overnutrition, dietary diversity,
household food security, and as well as their growth
dynamics. Our analysis focused on data collected from 2012
to 2014. The total sample size was 15,740 adolescent girls
aged 10–19 years, of which one third were early adolescents
aged 10–14 years, and one-tenth lived in urban areas. The
authors found that among young adolescent girls, the
proportion of moderate to severe thinness declined from 35
percent to 28 percent between 2012 and 2014, and rates of
overweight and obesity were consistently low. For older
adolescent girls (ages 15-19), the proportion of moderate to
severe thinness remained low, while rates of overweight and
obesity increased from 13 percent to 23 percent between 2012
and 2014. Overall, 17 percent of younger adolescent girls
were stunted in 2012, decreasing to 11 percent in 2014.
Study findings also highlighted substantial regional
variations in both age groups. Of concern was a decrease in
dietary diversity. The proportion of younger adolescent
girls falling into the poor dietary diversity group
increased from 54 percent in 2012 to 60 percent in 2014, and
for older adolescent girls, a similar pattern was evident,
with rates increasing from 53 percent to 64 percent. The
analysis of growth dynamics indicated substantial deficits
relative to healthy norms in the younger adolescent period.
Study findings emphasize the importance of leveraging
critical developmental entry points through high impact
adolescent nutrition interventions. These investments will
help ensure a future healthy work force, and a healthy next
generation of children in Bangladesh. |
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