Association between short birth intervals and childhood anemia severity in India: evidence from the fifth National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5)
- 1Department of Fertility and Social Demography, International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS), Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
- 2Department of Geography, Sadhu Ram Chand Murmu University of Jhargram, Jhargram, West Bengal, India
- 3School of Health Systems Studies, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Abstract
BackgroundAnemia affects 67.1% of Indian children aged 6–59 months. Short birth intervals (SBI) may exacerbate this burden through maternal nutritional depletion; however, empirical evidence linking SBI with specific levels of childhood anemia severity remains limited in India.MethodsWe analyzed nationally representative, secondary cross-sectional data from the National Family Health Survey-5 (NFHS-5, 2019–21), comprising an unweighted analytical sample of 101,240 mother–child pairs with children aged 6–59 months. Survey-adjusted multinomial logistic regression was used to assess the association between SBI and anemia severity (mild, moderate, and severe). Adjusted odds ratios (aOR) were estimated after controlling for key child, maternal, household, and geographic characteristics.ResultsCompared with non-short birth interval (NSBI), SBI was significantly associated with a higher odd of moderate anemia (aOR: 1.10; 95% CI: 1.05–1.15) and severe anemia (aOR: 1.18; 95% CI: 1.05–1.34), but not mild anemia. The highest burden of severe anemia was observed among children aged 6–23 months, those with birth weight <2,500 g, and those born to mothers with severe anemia. Children from Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe (SC/ST) communities, and the West, North, Central and South regions had higher odds of severe anemia, whereas higher maternal education, greater household wealth, and residence in the Northeast were associated with a lower odd of anemia.ConclusionSBI is associated with a higher odd of moderate and severe anemia among children in India, potentially associated with maternal nutritional depletion and intersecting structural inequities. Addressing this public health burden requires integrated strategies that promote optimal birth spacing, strengthen family planning services, and provide targeted maternal nutrition interventions for marginalized populations, thereby supporting progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals.
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BibTeX
@article{barik2026association,
title = {{Association between short birth intervals and childhood anemia severity in India: evidence from the fifth National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5)}},
author = {Soumen Barik and Arpita Show and Manoj Sonune},
journal = {Frontiers in Nutrition},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3389/fnut.2026.1945328},
url = {https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2026.1945328},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Association between short birth intervals and childhood anemia severity in India: evidence from the fifth National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5)
AU - Soumen Barik
AU - Arpita Show
AU - Manoj Sonune
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/23
JO - Frontiers in Nutrition
DO - 10.3389/fnut.2026.1945328
UR - https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2026.1945328
AB - BackgroundAnemia affects 67.1% of Indian children aged 6–59 months. Short birth intervals (SBI) may exacerbate this burden through maternal nutritional depletion; however, empirical evidence linking SBI with specific levels of childhood anemia severity remains limited in India.MethodsWe analyzed nationally representative, secondary cross-sectional data from the National Family Health Survey-5 (NFHS-5, 2019–21), comprising an unweighted analytical sample of 101,240 mother–child pairs with children aged 6–59 months. Survey-adjusted multinomial logistic regression was used to assess the association between SBI and anemia severity (mild, moderate, and severe). Adjusted odds ratios (aOR) were estimated after controlling for key child, maternal, household, and geographic characteristics.ResultsCompared with non-short birth interval (NSBI), SBI was significantly associated with a higher odd of moderate anemia (aOR: 1.10; 95% CI: 1.05–1.15) and severe anemia (aOR: 1.18; 95% CI: 1.05–1.34), but not mild anemia. The highest burden of severe anemia was observed among children aged 6–23 months, those with birth weight <2,500 g, and those born to mothers with severe anemia. Children from Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe (SC/ST) communities, and the West, North, Central and South regions had higher odds of severe anemia, whereas higher maternal education, greater household wealth, and residence in the Northeast were associated with a lower odd of anemia.ConclusionSBI is associated with a higher odd of moderate and severe anemia among children in India, potentially associated with maternal nutritional depletion and intersecting structural inequities. Addressing this public health burden requires integrated strategies that promote optimal birth spacing, strengthen family planning services, and provide targeted maternal nutrition interventions for marginalized populations, thereby supporting progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals.
SN - 2296-861X
ER -