Abstract
Malnutrition continues to be a primary concern for researchers and policymakers in India. There is limited scientific research on the effect of agriculture on child nutrition in the country using a large representative sample. To the best of our knowledge, no study has examined the spatial clustering of child malnutrition and its linkage with agricultural production at the district-level in the country. The present study aims to examine agricultural production's role in improving the nutritional status of Indian children through child feeding practices. The nutritional indicators of children from the National Family Health Survey-4 (2015-16) and the agricultural production data for all the 640 districts of India obtained from the District-Wise Crop Production Statistics (2015-16), published by the Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India were used for the analysis. The statistical analysis was undertaken in STATA (version 14.1). ArcMap (version 10.3), and GeoDa (version 1.8) were used for the spatial analysis. The study found a higher prevalence of malnutrition among children who had not received Minimum Meal Frequency (MMF), Minimum Dietary Diversity (MDD), and Minimum Acceptable Diet (MAD). Further, child feeding practices- MMF, MDD, and MAD- were positively associated with high yield rates of spices and cereals. The yield rate of cash crops, on the contrary, harmed child feeding practices. Production of pulses had a significant positive effect on MDD and MAD. Districts with high cereal yield rates ensured that children receive MMF and MAD. There is a significant spatial association between child feeding practices and malnutrition across Indian districts. The study suggests that adopting nutrient-sensitive agriculture may be the best approach to improving children's nutritional status.
Highlights
Malnutrition continues to be a primary concern for researchers and policymakers in India
The bivariate LISA map for wasting and the clustering of child feeding practices shows that the central region of India had spatial clustering for Minimum Acceptable Diet (MAD) (87 districts), Minimum Meal Frequency (MMF) (133 districts), and Minimum Dietary Diversity (MDD) (90) (Fig 6)
Agricultural diversity at the district level is significantly associated with child feeding practices and contributes to the better nutritional status of children, though the socioeconomic status of the households moderates its influence
Summary
Malnutrition continues to be a primary concern for researchers and policymakers in India. Data found a total of 47districts, especially the northern part of Uttar Pradesh, had the highest spatial clustering for a high prevalence of stunting against MMF (Fig 5). The bivariate LISA map for wasting and the clustering of child feeding practices shows that the central region of India had spatial clustering for MAD (87 districts), MMF (133 districts), and MDD (90) (Fig 6). Spatial clustering of 86 districts with a high prevalence of underweight children was observed in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar against a lower percentage of MMF (Fig 7). The clustering of low MDD and MAD with a higher prevalence of underweight could be observed across 34 and 58 districts, respectively
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