CHRONIC ENERGY DEFICIENCY IN WOMEN FROM RURAL BANGLADESH - SOME SOCIOECONOMIC DETERMINANTS

This paper explores a number of socioeconomic factors thought to expla in the wide prevalence of undernutrition among rural Bangladeshi women . The 1992 baseline survey data of the BRAC-ICDDR,B joint Research Pro ject at Matlab were used. Anthropometry was performed on a random sub- sample of 1462 currently married, non-pregnant women between 15 and 49 years of age. Women's nutritional status was defined in terms of Body Mass Index (BMI=wt in kg/ht in m(2)). Compared with women from better -off households, the mean weight (41.2 vs 43.0 kg; p < 0.0001), mid-up per arm circumference (MUAC) (22.1 vs 22.7; p< 0.0001), and BMI (18.5 vs 19.1; p<0.0001) of poor women were consistently lower. However, no significant difference in mean height was found between the two groups . The results showed that women aged more than 35 years are twice as l ikely to have a BMI <18.5 compared with younger women. Both years of s chooling received and socioeconomic status are found to be important p redictors of women's BMI. Women who have received one or more years of formal education are nearly half as likely to suffer chronic energy d eficiency (:BMI < 18 5) than women with no schooling. Again, better-of f women ar : found to be 0.77 times less likely to have chronic energy deficiency than women from poor households. The implications of these findings in improving the nutritional status of rural Bangladeshi wom en are discussed.