Adolescent birth is a major global concern owing to its adverse effects on maternal and child health. We assessed trends in adolescent birth and examined its associations with child undernutrition in Bangladesh using data from seven rounds of Demographic and Health Surveys (1996–2017, n = 12,006 primiparous women with living children <5 years old). Adolescent birth (10–19 years old) declined slowly, from 84% in 1996 to 71% in 2017. Compared with adult mothers (≥20 years old), young adolescent mothers (10–15 years old) were more likely to be underweight (+11 pp), have lower education (−24 pp), have less decision-making power (−10 pp), live in poorer households (−0.9 SD) with poorer sanitation (−15 pp), and have poorer feeding practices (10 pp), and were less likely to access health and nutrition services (−3 to −24 pp). In multivariable regressions controlled for known determinants of child undernutrition, children born to adolescents had lower height-for-age Z-scores (−0.29 SD for young and −0.10 SD for old adolescents (16–19 years old)), weight-for-age Z-score (−0.18 and −0.06 SD, respectively) as well as higher stunting (5.9 pp) and underweight (6.0 pp) than those born to adults. In conclusion, birth during adolescence, a common occurrence in Bangladesh, is associated with child undernutrition. Policies and programs to address poverty and improve women's education can help delay marriage, reduce early childbearing, and improve child growth.

中文翻译：

---

青少年出生和儿童营养不良：1996-2017 年孟加拉国人口和健康调查分析

青少年生育对孕产妇和儿童健康产生不利影响，因此成为全球关注的主要问题。我们使用来自七轮人口与健康调查（1996-2017，n = 12,006 名有活孩子 <5 岁的初产妇）。青少年生育（10-19 岁）下降缓慢，从 1996 年的 84% 下降到 2017 年的 71%。 与成年母亲（≥20 岁）相比，年轻的青春期母亲（10-15 岁）更容易出现体重不足(+11 pp)，受教育程度较低 (-24 pp)，决策权较低 (-10 pp)，生活在卫生条件较差的贫困家庭 (-0.9 SD) (-15 pp)，以及喂养方式较差（10 pp），并且不太可能获得健康和营养服务（-3 到 -24 pp）。在对已知的儿童营养不良决定因素进行控制的多变量回归中，青少年出生的儿童的年龄别身高 Z 值较低（年轻人为 -0.29 SD，老年青少年（16-19 岁）为 -0.10 SD）， -age Z-score（分别为 -0.18 和 -0.06 SD）以及更高的发育迟缓（5. 9 pp) 和体重不足 (6.0 pp)。总之，在孟加拉国很常见的青春期出生与儿童营养不良有关。解决贫困和改善妇女教育的政策和计划有助于推迟结婚、减少早育和促进儿童成长。