Study Findings from University of Queensland Broaden Understanding of Malnutrition (Reducing Children’s Malnutrition By Increasing Mothers’ Health Insurance Coverage: a Focus On Stunting and Underweight Across 32 Sub-saharan African Countries): Nutritional and Metabolic Diseases and Conditions – Malnutrition

2022 DEC 05 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Insurance Daily News -- Fresh data on Nutritional and Metabolic Diseases and Conditions - Malnutrition are presented in a new report. According to news reporting originating in St. Lucia, Australia, by NewsRx journalists, research stated, “Despite the potential role of a mother’s health insurance coverage in enhancing her children’s health and well-being, research examining its impact on children’s nutritional outcomes remains sparse. We examine the link between mothers’ health insurance subscription and child malnutrition using data extracted from the De-mographic and Health Surveys program across 32 sub-Saharan African countries on 109,019 children under the age of 5. We measure child stunting and underweight using height-for-age z-scores and weight-for-age z-scores, respectively.”

Financial support for this research came from United States Agency for International Development.

The news reporters obtained a quote from the research from the University of Queensland, “After addressing endogeneity, we found that mothers’ health insurance subscription decreases child stunting and underweight. These results are robust to different approaches to addressing endogeneity and different measures of child stunting and underweight. The effect of mothers’ health insurance subscription on stunting and underweight is more pronounced among girls than boys.”

According to the news reporters, the research concluded: “These findings further demonstrate that mothers’ health insurance subscription influences child stunting and underweight through maternal healthcare utilization and the provision of diversified diets to children.”

This research has been peer-reviewed.

For more information on this research see: Reducing Children’s Malnutrition By Increasing Mothers’ Health Insurance Coverage: a Focus On Stunting and Underweight Across 32 Sub-saharan African Countries. Economic Modelling, 2022;117:106049. Economic Modelling can be contacted at: Elsevier, Radarweg 29, 1043 Nx Amsterdam, Netherlands. (Elsevier - www.elsevier.com; Economic Modelling - http://www.journals.elsevier.com/economic-modelling/)

Our news correspondents report that additional information may be obtained by contacting Isaac Koomson, University of Queensland, Ctr Business & Econ Hlth, St. Lucia, Qld, Australia. Additional authors for this research include Raymond Elikplim Kofinti, Jones Arkoh Paintsil and Edward Kwabena Ameyaw.

The direct object identifier (DOI) for that additional information is: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.econmod.2022.106049. This DOI is a link to an online electronic document that is either free or for purchase, and can be your direct source for a journal article and its citation.

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