The effect of the Mid-Day Meal programme on the longitudinal physical growth from childhood to adolescence in India.

The study aims to examine the effect of the world's largest school-feeding programme, the Mid-Day Meal (MDM) programme, on the changes in the underweight prevalence among school-children in India. Data from the Indian Human Development Survey (IHDS) Rounds 1 (2004-05) and 2 (2011-12) were utilized. The sample included individual-level information of children aged 6 to 9 years in IHDS-1 who then turned 13 to 16 years in IHDS-2.

Evaluation of impact of engaging federations of women groups to improve women's nutrition interventions- before, during and after pregnancy in social and economically backward geographies: Evidence from three eastern Indian States.

Background: Undernutrition-before, during and after pregnancy endangers the health and well-being of the mother and contributes to sub-optimal fetal development and growth. A non-randomized controlled evaluation was undertaken to assess the impact of engaging federations of women's group on coverage of nutrition interventions and on nutrition status of women in the designated poverty pockets of three Indian states-Bihar, Chhattisgarh, and Odisha.

Method: The impact evaluation is based on two rounds of cross-sectional data from 5 resource poor blocks across 3 States, assigning 162 villages to the intervention arm and 151 villages to the control arm.

Utilisation of ANC services before and after the COVID-19 pandemic in selected resource-poor blocks of India: role of community health workers in Swabhimaan programme area.

Introduction: COVID-19 has disrupted maternal and child health services. Community Health Workers (CHWs) supported the women by visiting pregnant women's homes and providing the MCH services as required. This study attempts to understand the role of CHW and its impact on the Ante-Natal Care (ANC) services pre-pandemic and post-Pandemic in the poor resource setting.

Women empowerment through involvement in community-based health and nutrition interventions: Evidence from a qualitative study in India.

Women's empowerment is fundamental for realizing unalienable human rights and is vital to sustainable development outcomes. In India, the SWABHIMAAN intervention program was an integrated multi-sectoral strategy to improve girls' and women's nutrition before conception, during pregnancy, and after childbirth. This study assesses the role of self-help-group (SHGs) in improving the effectiveness of community health interventions and its impact on their self-empowerment.

Role of seasonality variation in prevalence and trend of childhood wasting in India: An empirical analysis using National Family Health Surveys, 2005-2021.

Background: Wasting develops over a short period and can be reversed with short-term interventions. The prevalence of wasting typically varies from season to season-becoming higher during the monsoon (June to September) season as compared to the winter (October to January) and summer (February to May) seasons every year in a cyclical fashion. However, to the best of our knowledge, using nationally representative demographic surveys to extensively study the impact of the timing of the survey on the results and trends around wasting has not been done so far.

Status and correlates of non-communicable diseases among children and adolescents in slum and non-slum areas of India's four metropolitan cities.

The emergence of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in childhood poses a serious risk to a healthy adult life. The present study aimed to estimate the prevalence of NCDs among children and adolescents in slums and non-slums areas of four metropolitan cities of India, and in rural areas of the respective states The study further, investigated the effect of the place residence as slum vs. non-slum and other risk factors of the NCDs.

An exploration of treatment seeking behavior of women experienced infertility and need for services in rural India.

Background: To make informed decisions on fertility treatment, couples need to understand the treatment options available to them. A wide range of treatment options is available from the traditional and biomedical service providers in India. There is a dearth of research to find out factors that influence the treatment-seeking behavior of couples, particularly in rural areas.

Data quality of birthweight reporting in India: Evidence from cross-sectional surveys and service statistics.

The study aims to assess the quality of birthweight data collected in two surveys, including the National Family Health Survey (NFHS) and the Comprehensive National Nutrition Survey (CNNS), and as reported in the statistics from the Health Management Information System (HMIS). The study also aims to assess the implications of the data on the estimates of low birthweight (LBW). The percentage of newborns whose birthweight is missing continues to be high in the recent surveys (NFHS-4: 22%, CNNS: 30%) despite an improvement from 66% in NFHS-3.

Status and correlates of micronutrient deficiencies in slum and non-slum areas of India's four metropolitan cities: Investigation from CNNS.

Micronutrient malnutrition is an emerging public health concern globally. It affects people of all ages and socioeconomic groups; however, the most marginalized are the worst affected. Using data from the Comprehensive National Nutrition Survey 2016-18, we determined the magnitude of deficiencies (of iron, zinc, vitamin A, folate, vitamins B and D) among children and adolescents (1-19 years of age) living in four metropolitan cities of India.

Correlates of access to sanitation facilities and benefits received from the in India: analysis of cross-sectional data from the 2018 National Sample Survey.

Objective: Equitable and affordable access to improved sanitation facilities is linked to health and is among the priority areas of development programmes in a country like India. This study assesses the level of different sanitation facilities accessed by households and attempts to understand the socioeconomic characteristics of the households that received financial benefits from the (), a Government of India flagship programme.

Design: Cross-sectional study.

Tuberculosis prevalence, knowledge of transmission and its association with vaccination of children.

Background: Understanding the perceptions of patients regarding tuberculosis (TB) will enable better design of a comprehensive, client-oriented program for the disease.

Methods: This study was conducted district-wise across India in 2015-2016 as part of the National Family Health Surveys (NFHS).

Results: We discovered that the prevalence of TB remains significantly high, with quite a high percentage of people being unaware of the exact cause of disease proliferation.

Do dietary patterns and morbidities have a relationship with primary infertility among women? A study from NFHS-4 (2015-16), India.

This study assessed the rate of primary infertility and its associated factors among 402,807 currently married women aged 20-49 years in India using National Family Health Survey-4 data collected in 2015-2016. Dietary patterns and selected morbidities were included as independent variables, and socioeconomic variables were considered as covariates. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were done to estimate the prevalence of primary infertility and assess its association with the selected variables, respectively.

The social paradoxes of commercial surrogacy in developing countries: India before the new law of 2018.

Background: Commercial surrogacy is a highly controversial issue that leads to heated debates in the feminist literature, especially when surrogacy takes place in developing countries and when it is performed by local women for wealthy international individuals. The objective of this article is to confront common assumptions with the narratives and experiences described by Indian surrogates themselves.

Methods: This qualitative study included 33 surrogates interviewed in India (Mumbai, Chennai and New Delhi) who were at different stages of the surrogacy process.

Continuum of maternal health care services and its impact on child immunization in India: an application of the propensity score matching approach.

Continuum of care throughout pregnancy, delivery and post-delivery has proved to be a critical health intervention for improving the health of mothers and their newborn children. Using data from the fourth wave of the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-4) conducted in 2015-16, this study examined the correlates of utilization of maternal health care services and child immunization following the continuum of care approach in India. The study also assessed whether the continuity in utilizing maternal health care services affects the immunization of children.

Predictors of the diets consumed by adolescent girls, pregnant women and mothers with children under age two years in rural eastern India.

Adolescents, pregnant women and mothers of children under 2 years of age are in stages of life characterized by higher nutritional demands. The study measured the dietary diversity of 17,680 adolescent girls, pregnant women and mothers of children under age 2 years in the eastern Indian states of Bihar, Chhattisgarh and Odisha using data from the Swabhimaan baseline survey conducted in 2016. The association of women's mean Dietary Diversity Scores with socioeconomic, health and nutrition service indicators was assessed.

Addressing reproductive health knowledge, infertility and coping strategies among rural women in India.

An awareness of fertility and the factors affecting it is crucial to dealing with infertility, though little research has been conducted in the context of rural India. This study assessed Indian women's perceived causes of, and strategies for coping with, infertility and the associations with levels of reproductive health knowledge in rural areas. Primary data were collected through mapping and listing in high infertility prevalence districts of West Bengal in 2014-15.

Effect of Differences in Month and Location of Measurement in Estimating Prevalence and Trend of Wasting and Stunting in India in 2005-2006 and 2015-2016.

Background: Child undernutrition in India remains widespread. Data from the National Family Health Survey 3 and 4 (NFHS-3 and NFHS-4) suggest that wasting prevalence has increased while stunting prevalence has declined.

Objective: The objectives of this study were to do the following: ) describe wasting and stunting by month of measurement in India in children <5 y of age in NFHS-3 and NFHS-4 surveys, and ) test whether differences in the timing of anthropometric data collection and in states between survey years introduced bias in the comparison of estimates of wasting and stunting between NFHS-3 and NFHS-4.

Levels and determinants of malnutrition among India's urban poor women: An analysis of Demographic Health Surveys 2006 and 2016.

A quarter of 400 million urban Indian residents are poor. Urban poor women are as undernourished as or worse than rural women but urban averages mask this disparity. We present the spectrum of malnutrition and their determinants for more than 26,000 urban women who gave birth within 5 years from the last two rounds of Demographic Health Survey 2006 and 2016.

Integrated multisectoral strategy to improve girls' and women's nutrition before conception, during pregnancy and after birth in India (Swabhimaan): protocol for a prospective, non-randomised controlled evaluation.

Introduction: Swabhimaan is a community-based programme to improve adolescent girls' and women's nutrition in the rural areas of three Indian states-Bihar, Chhattisgarh and Odisha with high prevalence of undernutrition.

Methods And Analysis: Swabhimaan has a nested prospective, non-randomised controlled evaluation. Since 2017, five intervention sites receive community-led interventions through national government's livelihood mission supported women's self-help group federations and five control sites will initiate these activities 36 months later, in 2020.

Nutrition status of nulliparous married Indian women 15-24 years: Decadal trends, predictors and program implications.

In India, 66% of 8 million married adolescents (~5.3 million) are nulliparous and likely to conceive soon. Among married young women aged 20-24 years about 9.

WASH practices and its association with nutritional status of adolescent girls in poverty pockets of eastern India.

Background: Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) practices may affect the growth and nutritional status among adolescents. Therefore, this paper assesses WASH practices and its association with nutritional status among adolescent girls.

Methods: As a part of an intervention programme, this study is based on baseline cross-sectional data.

Mid-upper arm circumference cut-offs for screening thinness and severe thinness in Indian adolescent girls aged 10-19 years in field settings.

Objective: (i) To assess diagnostic accuracy of mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) for screening thinness and severe thinness in Indian adolescent girls aged 10-14 and 15-19 years compared with BMI-for-age Z-score (BAZ) <-2 and <-3 as the gold standard and (ii) to identify appropriate MUAC cut-offs for screening thinness and severe thinness in Indian girls aged 10-14 and 15-19 years.

Design: Cross-sectional, conducted October 2016-April 2017.

Setting: Four tribal blocks of two eastern India states, Chhattisgarh and Odisha.

Sociodemographic characteristics of 96 Indian surrogates: Are they disadvantaged compared with the general population?

Commercial surrogacy in emerging countries such as India is often associated with exploitation of vulnerable women, the assumption being that it is performed by poor and uneducated women for rich intended parents. However, the hypothesis that surrogates are poor women has rarely been confronted with field data. The objective was to compare the socioeconomic characteristics of Indian surrogates interviewed in social studies with those of Indian women in the general population in order to provide preliminary data on whether surrogates have a specific profile and are indeed disadvantaged compared with their counterparts.

Context for layering women's nutrition interventions on a large scale poverty alleviation program: Evidence from three eastern Indian states.

Over 70 million women of reproductive age are undernourished in India. Most poverty alleviation programs have not been systematically evaluated to assess impact on women's empowerment and nutrition outcomes. National Rural Livelihoods Mission's poverty alleviation and livelihoods generation initiative is an opportune platform to layer women's nutrition interventions being tapped by project Swabhimaan in three eastern Indian states-Bihar, Chhattisgarh and Odisha.

Capacity Assessment of District Health System in India on Services for Prevention and Management of Infertility.

Background: Infertility is a neglected service component in the public health-care system in India.

Objectives: This study aims to assess the availability and practices on prevention and management services for infertility in the district health system.

Methodology: A cross-sectional survey of selected health facilities and the staff from 12 district hospitals (DHs), 24 community health centers (CHCs), 48 primary health centers (PHCs), and 48 subcenters was conducted using qualitative and quantitative methods.