Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39354364›Full record

ArticleBMC pregnancy and childbirth2024

Reducing stunting and underweight through mother's birth spacing: evidence from Ghana.

Gloria Essilfie, Raymond Elikplim Kofinti, Emmanuel Ekow Asmah

Abstract read
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Article in BMC pregnancy and childbirth, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

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2citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

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3 · Its place in the literature

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2 citing papers in PubMed.

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Gloria EssilfieDepartment of Applied Economics, School of Economics, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, Ghana. gloria.essilfie@ucc.edu.gh.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6766-7895
Raymond Elikplim KofintiDepartment of Data Science and Economic Policy, School of Economics, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, Ghana.
Emmanuel Ekow AsmahDepartment of Data Science and Economic Policy, School of Economics, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, Ghana.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundResearchers over the years have underscored the role of birth spacing on maternal health, however, inadequate maternal repletion due to shorter birth intervals could also affect the health of the child. Even so, limited studies exist on the linkage between birth spacing and child nutrition. This study examines the association between birth spacing and child stunting and underweight using the 2014 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey.

methodsThe study sourced data on 1, 904 children less than 59 months from the 2014 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey. The study employed bivariate analysis and logistic regressions to establish the association between birth spacing, and child stunting and underweight.

resultsThe analyses reveal that childbirth spacing between 24 and 35 months (OR = 0.62, 95% CI: 0.38-0.99; p < 0.05), 36 to 47 months (OR = 0.42, 95% CI: 0.25-0.70; p < 0 0.01), and beyond 47 months (OR = 0.47, 95% CI: 0.28-0.78; p < 0.01) have lower odds of child stunting than children with birth spacing less than 24 months. Children with birth spacing between 24 and 35 months (OR = 0.53, 95% CI: 0.29-0.98; p < 0.05), 36 to 47 months (OR = 0.44, 95% CI: 0.22-0.90; p < 0.01) and beyond 47 months (OR = 0.49, 95% CI: 0.26-0.94; P < 0.05) have lower odds of being underweight than those with birth spacing less than 24 months.

conclusionThe study reveals that mothers with a birth spacing of at least two to three years compared to their counterparts with less than two years of birth spacing have lower odds of having a stunted and underweight child under age five. The study recommends that Ghana Health Service and other healthcare providers should educate mothers on the gains of birth spacing of at least two years on their children.

Indexed as

Birth IntervalsGrowth DisordersThinnessAdolescentAdultChild, PreschoolFemaleGhanaHealth SurveysHumansInfantInfant, NewbornMaleMothersPregnancyYoung AdultBirth spacingGhanaStuntingUnder-fiveUnderweight

Identifiers

PMID39354364
PMCPMC11443834

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.