Abstract:
Undernutrition is a form of malnutrition in which the body does not obtain adequate protein and energy as well as insufficient intake of vitamins and minerals. The major forms include, wasting, stunting, and underweight. In the current study area, no previous research has been performed on the prevalence of undernutrition children aged 6 to 24 months. Therefore, this study examined the prevalence of undernutrition in children aged 6 to 24 months and associated factors in Eastern Ethiopia, Haramaya District.
Methods: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted in Haramaya HDSS involving 384 randomly selected mother-child dyads. Face-to-face interviews were conducted using a pre-piloted structured questionnaire through Kobo Toolbox. The collected data was exported to SPSS v.27 for statistical analysis. Binary logistic regression was utilized to determine the candidate variables for multivariate analysis model. Covariates with a p-value less than 0.25 in the binary analysis were included in the multivariate analysis. The adjusted odds ratio, along with a 95% confidence interval, was used to indicate the strength of the association.
Results: The prevalence of wasting, stunting, and underweight was 21.5% (95% C.I: 17.6, 25.9), 46.9% (95% C.I: 42, 52), and 35.5% (95% C.I: 30.9, 40.5.), respectively. Being born to an illiterate mother, [AOR=3.13; (95%CI: 1.52, 6.44)] and having low birth weight (LBW) [AOR=4.69; (95%CI: 2.48, 8.86)] were significantly associated with wasting. Similarly, underweight exhibited significant associations with having an illiterate mother [AOR = 2.25; (95%CI: 1.274, 3.973)], born as LBW [AOR=2.541; (95%CI: 1.487, 4.34)]. Concerning stunting, being a boy [AOR=0.522; (95% CI: 0.274, 0.993)] and low household dietary diversity [AOR=2.888; (95% CI: 1.26, 6.63)] were showed significant associations.
Conclusion: The study found a high prevalence of undernutrition across all three indicators, highlighting the need for action by stakeholders, including nutrition professionals and public health officials. Maternal education and infant birth weight were identified as common factors contributing to both acute (wasting) and chronic (underweight) undernutrition. This emphasizes the importance of prioritizing and improving maternal education through targeted approaches
