Journal Articles (James P. Grant School of Public Health)
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Item Factors associated with nutritional status and dietary practices of Bangladeshi adolescents in early pregnancy(The New York Academy of Sciences, 2/18/2018) Mridha, Malay K.; Matias, Susana L.; Arnold, Charles D.; Dewey, Kathryn G.Bangladesh has a high prevalence of adolescent pregnancy, but little is known about the nutritional status and dietary practices of Bangladeshi adolescents in early pregnancy or associated factors. We used the baseline data of 1552 pregnant adolescents from a longitudinal, cluster-randomized effectiveness trial conducted in northwest Bangladesh. Forty-four percent of the adolescents were short for their age, 36% had low body mass index, 28% were anemic, 10% had iron deficiency, and 32% had vitamin A deficiency. The mean consumption of animal-source foods was 10.3 times/week. In multivariate analysis, socioeconomic status, education, and food security were generally positively associated with anthropometric indicators and dietary practices but not with iron or vitamin A status. Our findings confirm that there is a high burden of undernutrition among these Bangladeshi adolescents in early pregnancy. Understanding factors related to undernutrition can help to identify adolescent pregnant women at higher risk and provide appropriate counseling and care.Item Knowledge and practice regarding menstrual hygiene management among the Rohingya refugee adolescent girls in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh: A mixed method study(Emerald Publishing, 5/15/2021) Rakhshanda, Shagoofa; Ahmed, Sahlil; Saidu, Samuel; Nderitu, Christine; Thapa, Basanta; Awal, Abdul; Farnaz, Nadia; Rahman, Atiya; Aktar, Bachera; Faruque, A.S.G.Purpose About half of the 16% adolescents in the world experience menstruation. Menstrual hygiene management (MHM) is a health concern and challenge especially in humanitarian situations as experienced by Myanmar Rohingya refugees living in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh. This study aims to assess knowledge, practice and influencing factors for MHM among Rohingya refugee adolescent girls of 14–18 years. Design/methodology/approach The study used both quantitative (a cross-sectional survey with 340 adolescent girls through a structured questionnaire) and qualitative (7 in-depth interviews with adolescent girls and 2 focus group discussions with the mothers) approaches. Quantitative data, analyzed using STATA version 13.0, were supported by qualitative data, grouped into themes and presented as matrix. Findings Around 51% adolescent girls learned about menstruation after menarche, at the mean age of 12 years, from their mothers and older sisters. About 75% used sanitary pads as absorbents which they got mostly as relief material or bought from local stores (83%); the rest used cloths and other materials (25%). About 57% of the respondents disposed of their absorbent by burying. Those who used reusable absorbents washed them with soap and water (40%) and mostly dried them indoors (17%). Factors influencing healthy MHM practice included the use of absorbent, privacy, disposal, washing and drying of clothes, physical activities, hygiene and pain management. Adolescents with secondary or higher education were four times more likely to have better MHM practice (odds ratio = 4.27; confidence interval = 1.19–15.31) than those with no formal schooling.Item Prevalence of and Factors Associated with Insufficient Physical Activity Among Adolescents: Evidence from the National Nutrition Surveillance Study(Oxford Academic, 5/29/2020) Hossain, Md Mokbul; Shamim, Abu Ahmed; Hasan, Mehedi; Hanif, Abu Abdullah Mohammad; Hossaine, Moyazzam; Ullah, Mohammad Aman; Sarker, Samir Kanti; Rahman, S M Mustafizur; Mitra, Dipak Kumar; Haque, Md Emdadul; Mridha, MalayObjectives: The World Health Organization (WHO) set a target of 15% relative reduction of the prevalence of insufficient physical activity (IPA) by 2025 among adolescents and adults globally. In Bangladesh, there is no national estimates of the prevalence of IPA among adolescents. In the recently completed round of the national nutrition surveillance (NNS 2018–2019), we aimed to estimate the prevalence and risk factors associated with IPA among adolescent girls and boys. Methods: NNS was conducted in 57 rural, 15 urban and 10 slum clusters selected using multistage cluster sampling. In these clusters, we collected data from 4732 adolescent girls and 4761 adolescent boys. We used Global Physical Activity Questionnaire to collect physical activity (PA) data. The WHO recommended cut off points for IPA (5–17 years: <300 minutes of moderate to vigorous-intensity PA weekly; 18–19 years: <150 minutes of moderate intensity PA weekly or <75 minutes of vigorous-intensity PA weekly) were used to estimate the prevalence of IPA. Bivariate and multivariable logistic regression were performed to identify factors associated with IPA. Results: Prevalence of IPA among girls and boys were 50.6% and 29.4%, respectively and the prevalence was significantly higher among early adolescents (10–14 years) than late adolescents in both boys and girls. The IPA prevalence was the highest among the adolescents living in non-slum urban areas (girls: 77.9% and boys: 64.6%). The IPA prevalence in slum areas was 36.6% for girls and 34.0% for boys; and in rural areas was 50.0% for girls and 28.2% for boys. For both girls and boys, age group, occupation and >6 hours of sitting per day were associated with IPA. Place of residence, consumption of fruits and vegetables, education and paternal occupation were associated with IPA only among the boys. On the other hand, maternal and paternal education and overweight/obesity were associated with IPA only among the girls. Conclusions: One in every two adolescent girls and one in every three adolescent boys do not meet the WHO recommended level of PA in Bangladesh. This study identified several modifiable factors associated with IPA among adolescent boys and girls and these factors should be addressed through comprehensive public health interventions in order to improve adolescent health in Bangladesh.Item Utilization of maternal health services among adolescent women in Bangladesh: a scoping review of the literature(Tropical Medicine & International Health, 2015-07) Shahabuddin, A. S. M.; Delvaux, Therese; Abouchadi, Saloua; Sarker, Malabika; Brouwere, Vincent Deobjective To understand the health-seeking behaviour of adolescent women in Bangladesh with respect to the use of maternal health services. methods Literature review of seven electronic databases: PubMed, ISI Web of Knowledge, PsycINFO, Embase, CINAHL, POPLINE and Global Health. Studies published in English between 1990 and 2013 which describe Bangladeshi adolescent women’s healthcare-seeking behaviour during pregnancy, delivery and post-partum were included. results Twelve studies were included in this review. 11 used quantitative methods and one used a mixed-methods approach. All studies included married adolescent women only. Women with lower educational levels are less likely to seek skilled maternal health services than those with higher levels of education. Use of maternal health services is also less common among rural married adolescent women than women in urban areas. Being part of the richest bands of wealth, having had previous experiences of childbirth and higher women’s autonomy positively influence the use of skilled maternal health services among married adolescent women in Bangladesh. Antenatal care is a key predictor of the use of skilled birth attendants for delivery and post-natal care. conclusion Maternal health-related programmes should be designed targeting rural and uneducated married adolescent women in Bangladesh. More qualitative investigations are required to broaden our understanding on maternal health-seeking behaviour of both married and unmarried adolescent women.