Objective: This study was aimed at assessing socio-demographic and economic factors associated with nutritional status of adolescent school girls in Lay Guyint Woreda, Northwest Ethiopia.
Methods: The school-based cross-sectional study comprising 362 adolescent girls aged 10-19 years was included in the study. Simple random sampling technique with proportional allocation to size was used to select the participants. An interviewer-administered questionnaire and anthropometric measurement were used to collect the data. An anthropometric measurement was converted to the indices of nutritional status using World Health Organization Anthro Plus software.
Result: The overall prevalence of stunting and thinness among adolescent girls were 16.3% and 29%, respectively. Adolescents aged 14-15 years (AOR = 3.65; 95% confidence interval: 1.87, 7.11), adolescents living in rural areas (AOR = 1.34; 95% confidence interval: 1.24, 2.33), and adolescents who did not have snack (AOR = 11.39; 95% confidence interval: 1.47, 17.8) were positively associated with stunting. Whereas mother's occupation was negatively associated with stunting (AOR = 0.12; 95% confidence interval: 0.17, 0.87). Similarly, being a rural resident (AOR = 2.40; 95% confidence interval: 1.13, 5.08) and adolescents aged 14-15 years (AOR = 6.05; 95% confidence interval: 2.15, 17.04) were positively associated with thinness. Educational status of adolescent girls was negatively associated with thinness (AOR = 0.13; 95% confidence interval: 0.05, 0.35).
Conclusion: Stunting and thinness are prevalent among adolescent girls. The age of adolescents, place of residence, having a snack, and mother's occupation was significantly associated with stunting and thinness. Having at least a one-time snack in addition to the usual diet is strongly recommended.
Keywords: Ethiopia; Nutritional status; adolescents; girls; stunting; thinness.