Biologia Molecular: Acesso Aberto

Gender Differentiate in Nutritional Status among Bangladeshi Adults: A Cross Sectional Study

Abstract

Islam MM, Mamun ASMA, Uddin MA, Sabiruzzaman M and Hossain MG

Background: Malnutrition is the important key risk factors for the various diseases. In this study, Body Mass Index (BMI) was used to measure nutritional status for adults. The aim of the study was to differentiate nutritional status between male and female in Bangladesh.
Methods: Data was extracted from Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey (BDHS-2011) dataset. Independent sample t-test, Z-proportional test, chi-square (χ2) test and multinomial logistic regression were used in this study.
Results: This study revealed that the prevalence of under and over nutrition among Bangladeshi adults aged 16-34 years were 23.6% and 14.3% respectively. It was found that the prevalence of under nutrition among men (26.3%) was significantly (p<0.01) higher than that of women (23.3%), while the prevalence of over nutrition among women (15.2%) was higher than that of men (7.2%). Height and weight of adult male was significantly (p<0.01) higher than female, but the mean value of BMI of female (21.32 ± 3.59 kg/m2) was significantly higher (p<0.01) than male (20.54 ± 2.83 kg/m2). Urban male and female were higher BMI than rural male and female (p<0.01). Multinomial logistic regressions exhibited that living location (division), education level, toilet facilities, marital status and wealth index were risk factors for malnutrition for both sexes.
Conclusion: This study demonstrated that a remarkable number of both male and female were malnourished in Bangladesh. This study suggested that controlling some modifiable factors such as household wealth quintile, education, working status and residence might reduce the prevalence of malnutrition among adults in Bangladesh.