Consanguineous marriages and child nutritional health—The moderating effect of household wealth

Abstract

Consanguineous marriages are prevalent in many societies especially in Asia and Africa, and are linked to various child nutritional health problems. The objective of this study is to investigate the relationship between consanguineous marriages and child nutritional health in Pakistan, and the moderating effect of wealth status on this relationship. Data from the Pakistan Demographic and Health Survey (PDHS) conducted in 2017–2018 were utilized. The sample includes 15,671 households, with 63.73% reporting consanguineous marriages. Binary logistic regression analysis was performed to examine the adjusted and unadjusted effect of consanguineous marriages and on children's nutritional health, and the moderating effect of household wealth was examined between consanguineous marriages and child nutritional health. The results revealed that consanguineous marriages were associated with increased odds of child wasting {OR 1.84(1.42–2.37)}, stunting {OR 1.23(1.08–1.41)}, and underweight {OR 1.61(1.38–1.88)}. While adjusted odds of stunting {AOR 1.03(0.90–1.19)} remain insignificant, the association between consanguineous marriages and child nutritional health was negatively moderated by household wealth. The study highlights the adverse impact of consanguineous marriages on child nutritional health, and the moderating effect of household wealth on child nutritional health. Efforts should be made to raise awareness about the health risks associated with consanguinity and promote interventions to improve child nutrition in consanguineous unions regardless of wealth status.