Depression by gender and associated factors among older adults in India: implications for age-friendly policies.

Inspite of implementing policies to control mental health problems, depression remains a severe health concern among older adults in India. We examined self-reported differences in the depression among older men and women in India and examined associated factors for gender differences in depression at the population level. We utilized nationally representative data from the Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI) wave I, for years 2017-2019.

Explaining the Urban-Rural Difference in Late-Life Depression in India: Evidence from a Multivariate Decomposition Analysis Based on Longitudinal Aging Study in India, Wave 2017-18.

Objectives: The study explored the associated factors of depression among older Indian adults and the influences of individual and socio-environmental factors in explaining the rural-urban difference in the prevalence of late-life depression.

Methods: Data come from the Longitudinal Aging Study in India, with a sample of 30,637 older adults aged 60 and above. Multivariable logistic regression and nonlinear multivariate decomposition analyses were conducted to fulfill the objectives.

Multivariate decomposition of gender differentials in successful aging among older adults in India.

Background: Rowe and Kahn define successful aging as a high physical, psychological, and social functioning in old age without major diseases. It is considered a viable solution to the burdens placed on healthcare systems and financial and social security in societies with aging population. The present study aimed to determine the prevalence of successful aging and explore the factors contributing to gender differentials in successful aging among older adults in India.

Indigenous population and major depressive disorder in later life: a study based on the data from Longitudinal Ageing Study in India.

Background: Existing evidence suggests that the indigenous older population who live with their families and friends might experience lesser depressive symptoms due to better emotional support and well-being. The present study aimed to investigate the differentials in the prevalence of the major depressive disorder among tribal and non-tribal older populations in India and to explore the contribution of socio-demographic, health-related, and household factors in such disparities.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted using data from the Longitudinal Aging Study in India (2017-18).

Decomposition of caste differential in life satisfaction among older adults in India.

Background: Being a multi-cultured country, India has varied social groups which largely shape the lives of individuals. Literature has shown that life satisfaction is highly associated with the social status of individuals. However, changing age dynamics (growing older) and definition of life among people presses the need to understand whether the additional years of life in older adults are manifested with the disparity in life satisfaction among the Scheduled Caste (SC)/ Scheduled Tribes (ST) and non-SC/ST social groups in recent years.

Effect of change in individual and household level characteristics on anemia prevalence among adolescent boys and girls in India.

Background: Anemia is a significant public health challenge that affects the population of all nations. Anemia among adolescents emerged as an alarming public health issue as it harms an individual's physical capacity and cognitive and work performance. The study aims to determine the effect of changes in individual and household level factors on the prevalence of anemia among adolescent boys and girls.

Examining sex disparity in the association of waist circumference, waist-hip ratio and BMI with hypertension among older adults in India.

Hypertension is a public health issue touted as a "silent killer" worldwide. The present study aimed to explore the sex differential in the association of anthropometric measures including body mass index, waist circumference, and waist-hip ratio with hypertension among older adults in India. The study used data from the Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI) conducted during 2017-18.

Early childhood circumstances and educational wellbeing inequality among tribal and non-tribal children in India: evidence from a panel study.

Despite efforts towards bridging the education gap between tribal (Scheduled Tribe) and non-tribal (Non-Scheduled Tribe) children, contrasting poor-quality education questioned the tribal children's educational wellbeing in India. Early childhood circumstances render a remarkable impact on the educational wellbeing of children in later years. This study examined the influence of early childhood circumstances (child, household and community characteristics) during 2005 on the educational wellbeing inequality (among India's tribal and non-tribal children) during 2012 using the India Human Development Survey panel dataset of 8611 children.

Examining infant and child death clustering among families in the cross-sectional and nationally representative Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey 2017-2018.

Objectives: We aim to examine the phenomenon of infant and child death clustering while considering the unobserved heterogeneity (frailty) at the family level.

Design, Setting, And Participants: We analysed Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey 2017-2018 data, including the birth history information for 47 828 children born to 18 134 women. We used Gompertz shared frailty model to control the correlation between event times at the mother level and capture the unobserved risks in infant and child deaths.

Multivariate decomposition analysis of sex differences in functional difficulty among older adults based on Longitudinal Ageing Study in India, 2017-2018.

Objectives: This study investigates the gender disparities in difficulty in activities of daily living (ADL) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) and explores its contributing factors among older adults in India.

Design: A cross-sectional study was conducted using country representative survey data.

Setting And Participants: The present study uses the data from the Longitudinal Ageing Study in India, 2017-2018.

Risk factors and clustering of mortality among older adults in the India Human Development Survey.

With wide socioeconomic mortality differential among older adults in India, a constant question of death clustering across high-risk families and communities arises. The present study uses a follow-up survey from India to investigate the socioeconomic, demographic and health predictors of old-age mortality clustering. Data of 16,964 older adults nested within 12,981 households from 2352 communities were used from India Human Development Survey (IHDS) round-I (2005) who were further tracked down in round-II (2012).

Decomposing rural-urban differences in successful aging among older Indian adults.

The modernization and shift towards urbanized lifestyles have triggered several diseases, and the context of aging varies in urban and rural settings in India. The study aimed to investigate the urban-rural differences in successful ageing among older adults in India and the contributing factors in those differences. The study utilizes data from nationally representative Longitudinal Ageing Study in India (LASI, 2017-18).

Determinants of multimorbidity of infectious diseases among under-five children in Bangladesh: role of community context.

Background: The presence of more than one morbid condition among children has become a global public health concern. Studies carried out in Bangladesh have primarily focused on diarrhoea and acute respiratory tract infections independently without considering their co-occurrence effect. The present study examines the multimorbid conditions of infectious diseases in under-five Bangladeshi children.

Association of mass media exposure with combustible and smokeless tobacco use among Indian population: findings from a panel survey.

Background: Despite introducing different policies and initiatives, India is recognized as one of the global players in the tobacco epidemic race. Our study explores the association between tobacco consumption and mass media exposure among the Indian population, considering the contextual factors affecting the clustering at the community and state levels.

Methods: Using two waves of the India Human Development Survey (IHDS) conducted in 2005 and 2012 for 16,661 individuals, the present study explores the association of mass media exposure and tobacco consumption in the short-term and the long-term period of Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA) implementation, which came into existence in 2004.

Neonatal and Postneonatal Death Clustering Among Siblings in Bangladesh: Evidence from Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey 2017-2018.

Despite knowledge of neonatal and postneonatal mortality determinants in Bangladesh, some families continue to lose a larger share of children, a phenomenon known as early-life mortality clustering. This study uses the random intercept Weibull survival regression model to explore the correlation of mortality risk among siblings at the family (or, mother) and community levels. Utilizing the Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey 2017-2018, we found evidence of death scarring, where children whose previous sibling was not alive at the time of conception had significantly higher odds of neonatal mortality.

Does substance use by family members and community affect the substance use among adolescent boys? Evidence from UDAYA study, India.

Background: Substance use among adolescents is risky behavior that had emerged as a concern in both developed and developing countries. Evidence revealed that substance use is more frequent among those adolescents whose immediate family members (parents, siblings and grandparents) also indulge in such consumption; however, scarce literature is present in the Indian context. Therefore, the present study examined whether substance use among family members and in the community is associated with the substance use behavior of adolescent boys in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

Banned by the law, practiced by the society: The study of factors associated with dowry payments among adolescent girls in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, India.

Background: Despite the prohibition by the law in 1961, dowry is widely prevalent in India. Dowry stems from the early concept of 'Stridhana,' in which gifts were given to the bride by her family to secure some personal wealth for her when she married. However, with the transition of time, the practice of dowry is becoming more common, and the demand for a higher dowry becomes a burden to the bride's family.

Differential in infant, childhood and under-five death clustering among the empowered and non-empowered action group regions in India.

Background: With 8,82,000 deaths in the under-five period, India observed varied intra-state and inter-regional differences across infant and child mortality in 2018. However, scarce literature is present to capture this unusual concentration of mortality in certain families by examining the association of the mortality risks among the siblings of those families along with various unobserved characteristics of the mother. Looking towards the regional and age differential in mortality, this paper attempts to provide evidence for the differential in mortality clustering among infants (aged 0-11 months), children (12-59 months) and under-five (0-59 months) period among mothers from the Empowered Action Group (EAG) and non-EAG regions of India.

Determinants of acquired disability and recovery from disability in Indian older adults: longitudinal influence of socio-economic and health-related factors.

Background: There is a higher burden of functional disability for Indian older adults with substantial variations across different geographic regions and socioeconomic groups as compared to other ageing Asian countries. Thus, using a national sample of older adults aged 60+ years, we aim to explore how common is acquiring of disability and recovery from disability among the older population of a developing country like India, and how do the various socioeconomic and health-related conditions impact this transition in disability status.

Method: The current study uses two waves of the India Human Development Survey (IHDS) and is based on panel data of 10,527 older adults.

Association of family structure with gain and loss of household headship among older adults in India: Analysis of panel data.

Background: Despite huge changes in demographic behaviors, the family continues to be the major source of psychosocial support for older adults in India. The loss of household headship can be a cause of disregard for the aged and is associated in a very fundamental way with other status losses. Our study used the two rounds of the India Human Development Survey to understand the association of family structure on the gain or loss status of household headship among 10,527 older adults.

Does lack of parental involvement affect school dropout among Indian adolescents? evidence from a panel study.

Despite the gross enrolment ratio of Indian children, being almost 91% in grades 6-8, the equivalently soaring rates of school dropout after 8th grade remains a huge concern for the policymakers. Researches from the developed countries and some developing countries have shown the benefits of parental involvement in their children's education in terms of reduced dropout rates. However, there is a stark absence of similar evidence in the Indian context.

Does early childhood adversities affect physical, cognitive and language development in indian children? Evidence from a panel study.

Early childhood adversities are known to impair the development potential of children, however, there is limited evidence for the same in the Indian context. This study provides evidence of the effect of relevant biological and social risk factors during early childhood on the physical, cognitive and language development of Indian children. Panel data from two rounds of the India Human Development Survey (IHDS) was used to examine these associations among the Indian children.