Factors Associated with Malnutrition Among Under-Five Rohingya Refugee Children in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract Objective To estimate the prevalence and determinants of malnutrition among under-five Rohingya refugee children living in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh. Design Community-based cross-sectional study. Setting Rohingya refugee camps, Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh. Participants A total of 256 children aged 6–59 months residing in refugee camps were enrolled through convenience sampling. Primary outcome measures Stunting, wasting, underweight, and overweight, measured using WHO standards. Methods It was a cross-sectional study with a 256-sample size. Respondents were selected by convenience sampling. The target population was the Rohingya people of Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh. A well-designed and pretested set of structured questionnaires was used to collect the information. The total study duration was 3 months of the period following the approval of the protocol. Informed consent was taken from the participants, and ethical issues were ensured by the Declaration of Helsinki. Data were analyzed by using SPSS. Results The prevalence of stunting, wasting, underweight, and overweight were 34.4%, 17.6%, 18.9%, and 6.9%, respectively. Age was inversely associated with stunting (AOR=0.97, 95% CI: 0.95–0.99, p=0.006). Male children had higher odds of wasting compared to females (AOR=2.03, 95% CI: 1.34–3.07, p=0.001). Children from poor households were more likely to be stunted (AOR=2.42, 95% CI: 1.31–4.48) and wasted (AOR=2.82, 95% CI: 1.23–6.47). Illiteracy among parents significantly increases the risks of malnutrition. Conclusions Malnutrition among Rohingya refugee children under five is alarmingly high. Both biological and socioeconomic determinants significantly influence nutritional status. Urgent multi-sectoral interventions addressing food security, parental education, and sanitation are required.