Dietary diversity and nutritional status of children enrolled in Anganwadis of Anekal Taluk, Bengaluru Urban District.

Background: Optimal infant and young child feeding (IYCF) practices ensure that child malnutrition is prevented. Through social protection and nutrition-related education, food security and appropriate nutrient intake can be ensured. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study among 196 children enrolled in Anganwadis of Anekal Taluk. Height, weight and mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) measurements were taken, and the parent was administered the dietary diversity and meal frequency questionnaire. Results: Mean age of the children was 2.97 years ± 0.98. The mean birth weight of the children was 2.51 kg ± 0.51. Most (25%) of the households belonged to the poorest wealth quintile category. Of the study population, 20.4% were severely underweight, 18.9% had severe stunting, and 6.6 had severe acute malnutrition (SAM) as per Weight-for-Height Z-scores. Overall, 80% of the children had at least one form of malnutrition. Most children met the minimum meal frequency (MMF) criteria (91.8%), and a majority of them (82.7%) had a minimum dietary diversity (MDD). Children not consuming the MDD are at risk for stunting, with an adjusted odds ratio (AOR) of 2.89 (1.22-6.86). Additionally, females are at risk for wasting, with an AOR of 2.52 (1.26-5.02). Female gender was associated with risk for any form of malnutrition, AOR 2.65 (1.23-5.73). Age more than 2 years was significantly associated with underweight and wasting, depicting the need for continued optimal infant and child feeding practices in the community even after 2 years. Conclusion: Post-coronavirus disease (post-COVID) pandemic, under-5 malnutrition continues to be highly prevalent despite social protection. Multifactorial causation of malnutrition should be understood, and social determinants of health should be addressed.