Household food security and nutritional status among early adolescent: a cross sectional study in urban slums of Kathmandu, Nepal.

Research report.

SUMMARY: Early adolescence is an important period of the life cycle; the food system can play a critical role in protecting food security and nutrition needs of early adolescents essential for a healthy transition from childhood to adulthood. Similarly, food security and nutrition are essential components of sustainable development and have been identified to play an integral role for national development and accorded to priority by the Government of Nepal. Despite the surging concerns regarding the food and nutrition security of adolescents throughout the nation, slums are often considered the vulnerable site. Although, most of the food security program has tended to focus on rural areas, there is a lack of new research focusing on slum dwellers, particularly health, food security and nutrition among early adolescents, is still lacking. People of urban slums face a unique set of challenges such a weak social support systems and high market dependence leading to greater food insecurity compared to rural populations. In this region, a larger number of adolescents suffer from chronic malnutrition and anemia which impact their health and well-being. Even more, the extent of malnutrition and food insecurity in the early adolescent group in urban areas is not well documented. This research hence focused on determining the association between household food security and nutritional status among early adolescents 10-14 years old living in urban slums of Kathmandu, Nepal and also to explore the association between socioeconomic and HH food security status. A Quantitative approach & cross sectional study design was used to assess the association between food security and nutritional status of early adolescents at a specific time. Data was collected using the Household Food Insecurity Access Scale tool developed by food & Nutrition Technical Assistance and tested in developing countries. Our study on food security and nutritional assessment regarding the slums of Kathmandu concluded that in recent days, most of the families of the slums are found to be significantly secure. However, very few families were insecure in terms of both with male being more affected compared to their female counterparts. The research concluded result aligns with the NDHS report and clearly illustrates the improving status of nutrition and food security throughout the nation.