Rangassamy Ilavarasu, Ganesamoorthy Karthika, Santhaseelan Amarnath, Dhasaram Premnath
Department of Pediatrics, Sri Venkateshwara Medical College Hospital, Ariyur, Puducherry, 605107, India.
Department of Community Medicine, Sri Lakshmi Narayana Institute of Medical Sciences (SLIMS), Ousudu Lake, Near Agaram Village, Puducherry, 605502, India.
Indian Pediatr. 2025 Apr;62(4):283-288. doi: 10.1007/s13312-025-00029-1. Epub 2025 Apr 3.
To assess the prevalence of minimum dietary diversity (MDD) and explore its associated determinants among children aged 6-60 months in rural Puducherry.
143 children aged 6-60 months were selected from rural areas of Puducherry using systematic random sampling in a cross-sectional study conducted between January and February 2024. Data were collected through a semi-structured questionnaire based on World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines for Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF) practices. MDD was defined as the consumption of at least five of eight food groups for children aged 6-24 months and seven food groups for children aged 25-60 months. Sociodemographic factors, food group consumption, and anthropometric measurements were also recorded. Statistical analysis involved Chi-square tests and binary logistic regression to identify associations between MDD and various factors.
55.24% of the children achieved MDD. Children aged 25-60 months (P < 0.001) and those with mothers over 30 years old (P = 0.001) were significantly more likely to meet MDD. Underweight (P = 0.001) and severely underweight children (P = 0.001) had a lower likelihood of achieving MDD. Factors such as gender, birth order, and socioeconomic status were not significantly associated with MDD.
Despite a higher MDD rate than the national average, a substantial proportion of children in rural Puducherry do not meet dietary diversity standards, particularly younger (< 24 months) and underweight children.
评估印度本地治里农村地区6至60月龄儿童的最低饮食多样性（MDD）患病率，并探讨其相关决定因素。
在2024年1月至2月进行的一项横断面研究中，采用系统随机抽样方法从印度本地治里农村地区选取了143名6至60月龄儿童。通过基于世界卫生组织（WHO）婴幼儿喂养（IYCF）实践指南的半结构化问卷收集数据。MDD的定义为：6至24月龄儿童摄入至少八种食物组中的五种，25至60月龄儿童摄入至少七种食物组。还记录了社会人口学因素、食物组消费情况和人体测量数据。统计分析采用卡方检验和二元逻辑回归，以确定MDD与各种因素之间的关联。
55.24%的儿童达到了MDD。25至60月龄的儿童（P < 0.001）以及母亲年龄超过30岁的儿童（P = 0.001）达到MDD的可能性显著更高。体重不足（P = 0.001）和严重体重不足的儿童（P = 0.001）达到MDD的可能性较低。性别、出生顺序和社会经济地位等因素与MDD没有显著关联。
尽管MDD患病率高于全国平均水平，但印度本地治里农村地区仍有相当比例的儿童未达到饮食多样性标准，尤其是年龄较小（<24月龄）和体重不足的儿童。
