Concurrent of stunting and overweight/obesity among children: evidence from Ethiopia

Background: Nutrition transition in many low and middle income countries (LMICs) has led to childhood nutritional outcomes to shift from a predominance of undernutrition to a dual burden of under and overnutrition. Yet, Infant and young child feeding programs in Ethiopia mainly focus on undernutrition. It is therefore crucial to assess the prevalence and determinants to better inform infant young child feeding programs. Methods: We analyzed anthropometric, sociodemographic and dietary data of children aged 6 to 23 months from 2016 Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey (EDHS). A total of 2,674 children were included in the current study. Concurrent of Stunting and Overweight/Obesity (CSO) prevalence was estimated by distal, intermediate and proximal factors. To identify factors associated with CSO, we conducted hierarchical logistic regression analyses. Results: The overall prevalence of CSO was 2.45%. The odds of CSO was significantly higher in children of low household wealth category, compared to their counter parts in the richest category (AOR=2.07, 95%CI=1.06 to 4.03, P=0.033). In boys, the likelihood of CSO was 1.60 times that of girls (95%CI =1.03 to 2.49, P =0.038). Above 12 months of age was associated with a higher odd of CSO, compared to below 12months of age (AOR=1.76, 95% CI=1.07 to 2.88, P=0.026). Small birth size was significantly associated with a higher odd of CSO, compared to large birth size (AOR=2.53, 95%CI=1.45 to 4.41, P=0.001). Children who did not take vitamin A supplement within the previous six months had a higher odd of CSO, compared to those who took (AOR=1.91, 95%CI =1.19 to 3.07, P =0.007). Conclusion: Our study provided evidence on the co-existence of stunting and overweight/obesity among infants and young children in Ethiopia. CSO was associated with various factors originating from community and child levels. Therefore, identifying children at risk of growth flattering and excess weight gain provides IYCF programs in Ethiopia and beyond with an opportunity of earlier interventions.