Malnutrition continues to be a primary concern for researchers and policymakers in India. There is limited scientific research on the effect of agriculture on child nutrition in the country using a large representative sample. To the best of our knowledge, no study has examined the spatial clustering of child malnutrition and its linkage with agricultural production at the district-level in the country. The present study aims to examine agricultural production’s role in improving the nutritional status of Indian children through child feeding practices. The nutritional indicators of children from the National Family Health Survey-4 (2015–16) and the agricultural production data for all the 640 districts of India obtained from the District-Wise Crop Production Statistics (2015–16), published by the Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India were used for the analysis. The statistical analysis was undertaken in STATA (version 14.1). ArcMap (version 10.3), and GeoDa (version 1.8) were used for the spatial analysis. The study found a higher prevalence of malnutrition among children who had not received Minimum Meal Frequency (MMF), Minimum Dietary Diversity (MDD), and Minimum Acceptable Diet (MAD). Further, child feeding practices- MMF, MDD, and MAD- were positively associated with high yield rates of spices and cereals. The yield rate of cash crops, on the contrary, harmed child feeding practices. Production of pulses had a significant positive effect on MDD and MAD. Districts with high cereal yield rates ensured that children receive MMF and MAD. There is a significant spatial association between child feeding practices and malnutrition across Indian districts. The study suggests that adopting nutrient-sensitive agriculture may be the best approach to improving children’s nutritional status.

Background Although Low birth weight (LBW) is an independent predictor of malnutrition, it is still a negligible public health issue in the Indian context. Where, a large number of children died due to complications from maternal and child malnutrition. Furthermore, each year, India loses its GDP due to the cost of micronutrient malnutrition which is more that the public health budget. MethodsTo conduct the study, 4th round of the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-4), a large-scale survey was used. The study used the last birth information (190,898) due to the detailed availability of maternal care information. The univariate and bivariate analysis was done to find out the percentage distribution. Further, a logistic regression was applied to examine the association between LBW and malnutrition (stunting, wasting, and underweight). The study also employed the Fairlie decomposition technique to estimate the contribution of LBW to malnutrition among Indian children. ResultsThe estimated result shows that childhood malnutrition was higher in most of the Empowered Action Group (EAG) states of India. Furthermore, the infant who was born with low birth weight was more likely to have stunted (OR=1.67; 95% CI: 1.60-1.75), wasting (OR=1.32; 95% CI: 1.26-1.39), and underweight (OR=1.44; 95% CI: 1.38-1.51) in their childhood as compared to infants with no low birth weight. The findings of the decomposition model explained 19 % of the difference in stunting, 12% in wasting, and 16% in underweight among the children born with low birth weight after controlling for background characteristics of the individuals. Other variables such as wealth status, mother’s education, height, mother’s age at birth, and sanitation facility were the significant contributors to childhood malnutrition in India. ConclusionsAlthough many nutrient-centric programmes are going on to control the nutrition status of children, the Indian government should focus more on control LBW. As LBW has a significant contribution to malnutrition, the study recommends that government should take all the necessary steps to implement and monitor some special schemes like the Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) at the ground level to reduce the burden of LBW.

Background Infants born with low birth weight (LBW), i.e. less than 2500g, is considered an important factor of malnutrition in Asia. In India, research related to this issue is still neglected and limited. Evidence exists that a large number of child deaths occur in India due to maternal and child malnutrition-related complications. Moreover, it has been found that the cost of malnutrition in India results in a significant reduction of the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Thus, in this current context, this study aims to explore the contribution of low birth weight to childhood undernutrition in India. Methods The study used data from the 5th round of the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5), a large-scale survey conducted in India. The survey collected information from 176,843 mothers and 232,920 children. The study used the last birth information (last children born 5 years preceding the survey) due to the detailed availability of maternal care information. Univariate and bivariate analyses were conducted to determine the percentage distribution of outcome variables. Multivariate logistic regression was employed to examine the association between LBW and undernutrition (stunting, wasting, and underweight). The study also used the Fairlie decomposition analysis to estimate the contribution of LBW to undernutrition among Indian children. Results The results show that childhood undernutrition was higher in states like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Gujarat, and Maharashtra. The results of the logistic regression analysis show that infants born with low birth weight were more likely to be stunted (OR = 1.46; 95% CI: 1.41–1.50), wasted (OR = 1.33; 95% CI: 1.27–1.37), and underweight (OR = 1.76; 95% CI: 1.70–1.82) in their childhood compared to infants born without low birth weight. The findings from the decomposition analysis explained that approximately 14.8% of the difference in stunting, 10.4% in wasting, and 9.6% in underweight among children born with low birth weight after controlling for the individuals' selected characteristics. Conclusion The findings suggest that LBW has a significant contribution to malnutrition. The study suggests that policymakers should prioritize strengthening maternal and child healthcare schemes, particularly focusing on antenatal and postnatal care, as well as kangaroo mother care at the grassroots level to reduce the burden of LBW and undernourished children.