Food Insecurity and Its Association with Nutritional Status among Women of Reproductive Age Group in Noakhali District, Bangladesh

Abstract

Objectives: To investigate food insecurity and its association with nutritional status among women of
reproductive age group in Noakhali District, Bangladesh
Study design: It is a Cross-sectional study in nature.
Methods:This study was a primary analysis of 400 reproductive aged women with a structured questionnaire.
We carried out frequency tabulation, binary and multivariate logistic regression of study variables to achieve
the study objective.
Results: Prevalence of HFIAS was 66.30 with 11.00%, 41.8%, and 13.5% mild, moderate, and severe
food insecurity, respectively and underweight prevalence (BMI < 18.5) was 14.00%. Respondents who had
completed secondary level of education (AOR =0.448, 95% CI: 0.226,0.885) and SSC and higher level of
education (AOR =0.222, 95% CI: 0.060,0.819) had less odds of food insecurity. Woman whose family’s
food expenditure level was between 10000 to 20000 taka (AOR =0.280, 95% CI: 0.151,0.518) and > 20000
taka (AOR =0.034, 95% CI: 0.004-0.2999) had less odds of food insecurity. When the household head
were businessman, respondents had less odds of food insecurity (AOR =0.184, 95% CI: 0.037, 0.912).
This result has shown that 30–39-year-old women (AOR =0.353; 95% CI: 0.181, 0.686) and more than 40
years old women had less odds (AOR =0.371; 95% CI: 0.176, 0.783) of underweight. Respondents with
had completed SSC and higher level of education had less chance (AOR =0.273; 95% CI: 0.101, 0.741)
of being underweight. Women those were from severe food insecurity households were more likely to be
underweight (AOR =1.595, 95% CI: 0.789, 3.226).
Conclusions: Effort should be made to provide essential social services such as education and health
promotion intervention to overcome the immediate consequence of food insecurity and under nutrition
which will help to defeat the current condition and will help to achieve active and healthy life.