Date of Award

12-2024

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Health Policy and Management

First Advisor

Dr. Jai K. Das

Second Advisor

Dr. Saleema Gulzar

Third Advisor

Ms. Hira Farooq

Department

Community Health Sciences

Abstract

Background: In 2021, UNICEF, WHO, and the World Bank reported that over 340 million adolescents worldwide face the dual burden of malnutrition, especially in low- and middle-income countries. The Global Nutrition Report attributed 26% of adolescent deaths in Southeast Asia to malnutrition. Pakistan faces critical challenges with 44% of adolescents stunted, 41% underweight, and 37% underweight due to poor dietary diversity and food insecurity, compounded by factors like high food insecurity, early marriages, poor dietary choices, and micronutrient deficiencies, hence highlighting the need for focused nutritional interventions for adolescents, especially girls, in Pakistan.
Objectives:Primary: To assess the dietary intake of adolescents in the rural district of TMK in Sindh. Secondary: To assess factors associated with malnutrition and dietary intake among adolescents of district TMK in Sindh, Pakistan.
Methodology:5 This study is a secondary data analysis, of the primary research titled “Adolescent’s Health, Nutrition and Well-being Survey (HAWS)” conducted in 2021 in the same setting as the Community Mobilization and Community Incentivization (CoMIC) trial at Aga Khan University. This secondary data analysis includes key indicators such as dietary diversity scores, food insecurity, nutritional intake through 24-hour dietary recalls, and anthropometric measurements such as BMI for age, to assess nutritional deficiencies and inadequacies among adolescents. Descriptive analysis (mean, standard deviation) were reported for continuous variables, while categorical data were summarized as frequencies and proportions. Dietary intake analysis was conducted on 24-hour dietary recall data facilitated in the estimation of daily macro and micronutrients intake, analyzed using STATA version 17.
Results and Discussion: Adolescents in TMK consume insufficient energy, with arbohydrate dominance from staples like wheat and rice, and they lack protein and essential nutrients. Overall, according to the Food Insecurity Experience Scale, 65% of the households experienced severe food insecurity, leaving only 13.9 % food secure.Out of these, the percentage of underweight adolescents in households experiencing severe food insecurity is greater (20.0%), suggesting that food insecurity is likely a contributing factor to undernutrition.
Conclusion: 6 Due to the lack of availability and access to nutrient-dense foods and low dietary diversity, both macro and micronutrient deficiencies, need an urgent and targeted approach to interventions to improve the overall nutritional status of adolescents in rural areas of Pakistan.

First Page

1

Last Page

201

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