Introduction: Childhood undernutrition is a crucial public health problem globally. The objective of this study is to measure the prevalence of childhood undernutrition and assess the distinct role of various factors on childhood undernutrition in Bangladesh. Methods: This study utilized the latest cross-sectional data from Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey 2014. A total of 7256 data on children younger than 5 years old were analyzed. The undernutrition status of children was assessed by stunting (height-for-age), wasting (weight-for-height), and underweight (weight-for-age), while bivariate and multivariate analyses were performed to identify various individual-, household-, and community-level factors of childhood undernutrition. Results: The prevalence of stunting, wasting, and underweight were 36.5%, 14.6%, and 32.5%, respectively. Along with various individual- and household-level factors (eg, age, recent diarrheal disease, fever, number of under-5 children in the household, mother’s education and nutritional status, and wealth status), community index, particularly regional and geographic variation of community, had significant role for childhood undernutrition in Bangladesh. Conclusion: Childhood undernutrition is an overwhelming public health issue in Bangladesh. In order to improve the nutritional status of under-5 children, interventions should take into account the various predictors discussed in this study. Indeed, a joint effort by the government, nongovernmental organizations, and the community is necessary to improve the childhood nutritional status in Bangladesh.

Background: Reducing child mortality and morbidity is a public health concern globally. Like many other developing countries, Bangladesh is struggling to improve child health status as the use of medical treatment is still not at a satisfactory level. Hence, the objective of this study is to identify the contributing factors for inequalities in the use of medical treatment for common childhood illnesses in Bangladesh. Methods: The study used data from the latest Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey (BDHS)-2014. Children who had diarrhea, fever and cough in the 2 weeks preceding the survey were included in this study. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were conducted to unearth the influential factors for medical treatment use among under-five children with childhood illnesses. In the multivariate logistic regression, adjusted odds ratios with p values less than 0.05 were considered for determining significant predictors. Results: This study found that only 37% of children suffering from fever/cough sought medical treatment while this figure was approximately 36% for diarrhea. Age of children, household wealth status, father's education level, region of residence, number of children in the household, access to electronic media were identified as factors contributing to inequality in health care utilization for common childhood illnesses in Bangladesh. Conclusions: Various socioeconomic factors substantially influence the utilization of medical treatment for childhood illnesses. Therefore, to enhance equitable access to health care for children, interventions should be designed targeting children from households with low socioeconomic status. Various awareness-raising health education programs, poverty alleviation programs especially for rural areas can contribute in this regard.

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Background As both micronutrients and antimicrobial peptides protect against diarrhoea, we looked for an effect on intestinal antimicrobial peptide gene expression during a randomised controlled trial of multiple micronutrient (MM) supplementation. Methods Consenting adults (n=287) in Lusaka, Zambia were randomised to a daily MM supplement or placebo, and followed for 3.3 years with a cross-over after 2 years. Intestinal biopsies were taken at annual intervals and mRNA of the intestinal antimicrobial peptides HD5, HD6, hBD1, hBD2 and LL-37 were quantified by real time RT-PCR. Samples were also taken during diarrhoea episodes and after convalescence. Results There was no effect overall of treatment allocation. However in malnourished adults (body mass index <18.5kg/m2), HD5 mRNA was increased by 0.8 log transcripts/μg total RNA in MM recipients compared to placebo (P=0.007). During diarrhoea, HD5 expression was reduced by 0.8 log transcripts in placebo recipients (P=0.02) but not in MM recipients nor after the cross-over. Correlations between HD5 and nutritional status were found which were sex-specific but not explained by serum leptin or adiponectin concentrations. Conclusion Micronutrient supplementation was associated with up-regulation of HD5 only in malnourished adults. Interactions between antimicrobial gene expression and nutritional status may help explain increased infection risk in malnutrition.

Background Overweight and obesity of women is a growing concern all over the world. However, an understanding on the socio-economic inequalities in overweight and obesity of women received little attention, especially in the context of Bangladesh. Therefore, the objective of this study was to measure the inequality in overweight and obesity among women of reproductive age in Bangladesh as well as to explore the effect of various socio-economic factors on this inequality. Methods This study used data from the Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey 2014 which is a nationally representative data. The concentration index of overweight and obesity was applied to measure the extent of socio-economic inequality. Finally, the concertation index was decomposed in order to understand the contribution of different socio-economic variables in inequality in overweight and obesity of women. Results This study included a total of 16,624 women of reproductive age. The study found that the prevalence of overweight was about 29% and the rate of obesity was approximately 11%. The value of concentration index for overweight and obesity was 0.37 (p < 0.001). This study also observed that about 52% inequality was explained by household’s wealth status followed by watching television (25%), husband/partner’s educational status (around 7%), women’s educational status (about 5%), place of residence (approximately 4%). Conclusions This study found notable level of overweight and obesity among the women of Bangladesh. Various socio-economic factors like wealth status, education levels of women and partners, urban settings, women watching television predominantly contributed to the inequality in overweight and obesity among women of reproductive age. Therefore, the study suggests adopting necessary interventions targeting the women of higher socio-economic status to reduce the risk of life-threatening problems caused by overweight and obesity.