Cross-sectional survey reveals a dual burden of undernutrition and obesity in children aged 5–9 years, highlighting urgent needs for targeted socioeconomic and regional interventions.
Key Points
Evaluate nutritional status and identify socio-demographic determinants among children aged 5–9 years to inform national public health and policy planning.
Conducted a household-level cross-sectional survey utilizing stratified cluster sampling across two large provinces in Pakistan (N=5952 children aged 5–9 years).
Assessed socio-demographic markers, anthropometric metrics, hemoglobin concentrations, food security, and dietary diversity using multivariable logistic regression models.
Overall, 17.6% of children were underweight, 23.4% were stunted, 35.4% were anemic, and 7.4% were overweight.
Children in Punjab had significantly lower odds of being underweight (AOR: 0.73, 95% CI 0.61–0.87), stunted (AOR: 0.62, 95% CI 0.54–0.73), and anemic (AOR: 0.45, 95% CI 0.39–0.53) compared to children in Sindh.
Higher odds of obesity were associated with male sex (AOR: 1.40), urban residence (AOR: 1.02), and placement in the richest wealth quintile (AOR: 2.59) versus the poorest quintile.