Determinants of early age of mother at first birth in Bangladesh: a statistical analysis using a two-level multiple logistic regression model

Abstract

The timing of a woman's first birth is significant because motherhood involves a substantial commitment of time and resources. Early age at first birth is a factor that significantly influences the rapid population growth in Bangladesh. In addition, early age at first birth has a negative effect on occupational achievements, marital stability, and maternal and neonatal health. The aim of this study was to determine the factors influencing early age at first birth. Data were collected from the Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey (BDHS) 2014. The BDHS 2014 data were obtained from 17,863 ever-married women using two-stage stratified sampling. Chi-square test and two-level multiple binary logistic regression models were performed to analyze the data. A total of 15,842 ever-married women with mean age of 18.22 ± 0.389 years were included in this study. Muslim women (AOR = 1.32, 95% CI: 1.11–1.56, p < 0.001), early marriage (AOR = 13.25, 95% CI: 11.83–14.76, p < 0.001) and women currently using contraceptives (AOR = 2.39, 95% CI: 1.25–1.55, p < 0.01) were more likely to have early age at first birth, whereas women from higher income households (AOR = 0.72, 95% CI: 0.57–0.91, p < 0.05), with higher education (AOR = 0.25, 95% CI: 0.21–0.31, p < 0.001), employed (AOR = 0.87, 95% CI: 0.78–0.98, p < 0.05) and whose husbands had higher education levels (AOR = 0.61, 95% CI: 0.48–0.76, p < 0.001) or were service holders (AOR = 0.74, 95% CI: 0.58–0.93, p < 0.05) were less likely than their counterparts to have their first birth at an early age. The government should take the necessary steps to make policies to control the occurrence of women having their first birth at an early age by emphasizing the significant factors obtained from this study.