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Background <p>India faces alarming child undernutrition, with 35.5% stunted, 19.3% wasted, and 32.1% underweight children under five years. Mass media empowers mothers by building their nutrition knowledge, spurring healthier practices, and positively impacting children’s lives.</p> Objective <p>To examine the association between maternal mass media exposure and nutritional outcomes of children aged 0–59 months in India.</p> Data and Methods <p>Data were drawn from NFHS-5 (2019–21) for children under five (<i>n</i> = 209,212). Multivariable logistic regression was performed to examine the relationship between maternal mass media exposure and nutritional outcomes (stunting, wasting, and underweight) using the statistical software Stata (version 17.0). GIS environment (ArcGIS 10.3.1) was used to visualize the data for mapping purposes.</p> Results <p>The prevalence of stunting (44.12%), wasting (21.05%), and underweight (40.15%) was significantly higher in areas where the mother’s exposure to mass media was almost absent. Mass media exposure is linked with child nutrition, where partial exposure substantially reduces stunting [AOR: 0.92; CI: 0.89 to 0.95] and Underweight [AOR: 0.93; 95% CI: 0.90 to 0.96]. Higher maternal education reduces the likelihood of stunting in children of mothers with secondary education [stunting AOR: 0.80; 95% CI: 0.77 to 0.83] and higher education [stunting AOR: 0.66; 95% CI: 0.62 to 0.70].</p> Conclusion <p>To address this need, policymakers and health service providers should consider implementing regular mass media campaigns to educate mothers on accessing and interpreting accurate health information through various media channels. Such initiatives can enhance mothers’ ability to make informed choices about personal and child health.</p>

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The health information-nutrition link: Assessing how media access influences child undernutrition in India

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年3月2日

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  • Jay Saha,
  • Subhankar Singha,
  • Pradip Chouhan

摘要

Background

India faces alarming child undernutrition, with 35.5% stunted, 19.3% wasted, and 32.1% underweight children under five years. Mass media empowers mothers by building their nutrition knowledge, spurring healthier practices, and positively impacting children’s lives.

Objective

To examine the association between maternal mass media exposure and nutritional outcomes of children aged 0–59 months in India.

Data and Methods

Data were drawn from NFHS-5 (2019–21) for children under five (n = 209,212). Multivariable logistic regression was performed to examine the relationship between maternal mass media exposure and nutritional outcomes (stunting, wasting, and underweight) using the statistical software Stata (version 17.0). GIS environment (ArcGIS 10.3.1) was used to visualize the data for mapping purposes.

Results

The prevalence of stunting (44.12%), wasting (21.05%), and underweight (40.15%) was significantly higher in areas where the mother’s exposure to mass media was almost absent. Mass media exposure is linked with child nutrition, where partial exposure substantially reduces stunting [AOR: 0.92; CI: 0.89 to 0.95] and Underweight [AOR: 0.93; 95% CI: 0.90 to 0.96]. Higher maternal education reduces the likelihood of stunting in children of mothers with secondary education [stunting AOR: 0.80; 95% CI: 0.77 to 0.83] and higher education [stunting AOR: 0.66; 95% CI: 0.62 to 0.70].

Conclusion

To address this need, policymakers and health service providers should consider implementing regular mass media campaigns to educate mothers on accessing and interpreting accurate health information through various media channels. Such initiatives can enhance mothers’ ability to make informed choices about personal and child health.