Pooled prevalence and associated factors of overweight/obesity among under-five children in 46 low- and middle-income countries
A cross-sectional analysis of Demographic and Health Surveys data (2015–2024)
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 24141093 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Dejen Kahsay Asgedom (0009-0000-5777-1269, Samara University, corresponding author), Fentahun Bikale Kebede (0000-0001-6350-7085, Government of Ethiopia), Simachew Getaneh Endalamew (0009-0005-2692-7394, Bahir Dar University), Bewuketu Terefe (0000-0002-0063-0999, The University of Queensland), S Assefa (Ethiopian Public Health Institute), Solomon Keflie Assefa, Etsay Woldu Anbesu (0000-0002-4532-6720, Samara University) |
| Editors | Fatemeh Shahbazi |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 6 |
| Issue | 8 |
| Pages | e0006575 |
| Publication date | 2026-08-24 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | PLOS Global Public Health (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2767-3375 • E-ISSN: 2767-3375 |
| Publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1371/journal.pgph.0006575 |
| PMID | 42636224 |
| OpenAlex | W7204120160 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 46 |
Overweight and obesity remain major global public health challenges, particularly among children under five years of age in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). This study aimed to assess the pooled prevalence of overweight/obesity and its associated factors among children aged 6–59 months in 46 LMICs. We used the most recent nationally representative demographic and health surveys (2015–2024) from forty-six LMICs. A total of 393,638 weighted samples of children aged 6–59 months were included. Childhood overweight and obesity were defined as weight-for-height greater than two and three standard deviations above the WHO reference population median, respectively. Multilevel log-binomial regression models were employed. An adjusted risk ratio ( R R ) with a 95% confidence interval (CI) was used to select variables that had a significant association with childhood overweight/obesity. A p value
Childhood obesity · Confidence interval · Multilevel model · Obesity · Overweight · Population · Public health · Child and Adolescent Health · Child Nutrition and Water Access · Obesity, Physical Activity, Diet
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| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |