SOCIOECONOMIC DIFFERENTIALS IN CHILD NUTRITION AND MORBIDITY IN A RURAL AREA OF BANGLADESH

Socioeconomic differentials in mortality have been well-documented; this study examines differentials in nutritional status and morbidity in an attempt to elucidate some of the mechanisms underlying these patterns. Data were collected during 1981 surveys of household socioeconomic indicators, child nutritional status (determined on the basis of anthropometric measurements), and child morbidity in five villages in Matlab thana, Bangladesh. Household wealth indicators-size of landholding; cows, boats and moder goods owned; occupation of household head, amount of tax paid in the previous year, and size and quality of housing-were negatively associated with the proportion of children who could be classified as malnourished using standard criteria. Years of education of the head of the household, of the household member with the most education, and of the child''s mother had a similar relationship with proportion malnourished. Neither of the two measures of household sanitation-source of drinking water or use of a latrine-were correlated with nutritional status. No simple association was observed between any socioeconomic or educational indicator and reported child morbidity in the week preceding the anthropometric measurement. One particularly interesting finding was that the decline in the proportion malnourished seen with increasing socioeconomic status was greater for males than females, so that girls are relatively more disadvantaged in higher-status families.