Determinants of Diarrhoea among Tribal and Non-Tribal Children under Five in Eastern India: Insights from National Family Health Survey 5 (2019-21)

Dipika Subba, Cooch Behar Panchanan Barma University

Diarrhea remains a leading cause of global morbidity and mortality for children under age five, and is an increasingly prevalent disease in developing countries like India. Despite national efforts to address this issue, the burden of diarrhoea manifests differently across different socio-cultural groups. The present study aims to assess the prevalence of diarrhoea among children aged 0-5 years in tribal and non-tribal communities in Eastern India and identify associated risk factors. The study uses data from the National Family Health Survey 5, 2019-21. The study includes 41,296 children from Eastern India. The outcome variable is the prevalence of diarrhoea, while the explanatory variables are socio-demographic and environmental factors. Descriptive statistics, chi-square test, and binary logistic regression were employed to identify significant factors associated with childhood diarrhoea. For tribal children, maternal employment and poor maternal nutrition were significant risk factors. For non-tribal children, younger mothers, undernourished mothers, younger children, children with low birth weights, small family sizes, and poor households were identified as significant factors associated with diarrhoea. The findings highlight the diverse risk profiles within tribal and non-tribal communities, emphasizing the need for targeted interventions that address specific socioeconomic, environmental and regional factors to effectively mitigate childhood diarrhoea in Eastern India.

Keywords: The Demography of Indigenous Populations, Health and Morbidity, Big data, Multi-level modeling

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