Child malnutrition and prenatal care: evidence from three Latin American countries.

Abstract

OBJECTIVE:

To examine the effect of prenatal care (PNC) on the level and distribution of child stunting in three Andean countries-Bolivia, Colombia, and Peru-where expanding access to such care has been an explicit policy intervention to tackle child malnutrition in utero and during early childhood.

METHODS:

An econometric analysis of cross-sectional Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) data was conducted. The analysis included ordinary least-squares (OLS) regressions, estimates of concentration curves, and decompositions of a concentration index.

RESULTS:

The analysis shows that the use of PNC in Bolivia, Colombia, and Peru is only weakly associated with a reduction in the level of child malnutrition.

CONCLUSIONS:

Further expansion of PNC programs is unlikely to play a large role in reducing inequalities in malnutrition.

• Authors: Nohora Forero-Ramirez, Luis F Gamboa, Arjun Bedi, Robert Sparrow
• Journal: Revista panamericana de salud publica = Pan American journal of public health (Rev Panam Salud Publica) Vol. 35 Issue 3 Pg. 163-71 (Mar 2014) ISSN: 1680-5348 [Electronic] United States
• PMID: 24793862 (Publication Type: Comparative Study, Journal Article)

Topics

• Adult
• Bolivia (epidemiology)
• Child Nutrition Disorders (epidemiology)
• Child, Preschool
• Colombia (epidemiology)
• Failure to Thrive (epidemiology)
• Female
• Health Status Disparities
• Humans
• Infant
• Male
• Peru (epidemiology)
• Pregnancy
• Prenatal Care (standards)
• Prevalence