Sadia Mahmood, Tabinda Zaman, Suresh Kumar, Shahzad Ali Khan.
Prevalence of malnutrition among adolescent girls: a study of public sector colleges of Islamabad.
Pak J Public Health Jan ;6(1):31-5.

Background: Malnutrition among women can cause families, communities, and nations economic loss as out of malnutrition women's ability to work decreases and it might create ripple effects that extend through generations. Thefundamental target of the study was to assess the prevalence of malnutrition among adolescent girls studying in public sector colleges of Islamabad. In Pakistan numerous school-based studies have been directed yet there is restricted information accessibility. Method: In current study descriptive cross sectional research design was used and simple random sampling was utilized for sample selection. Through sample estimation formula sample size was estimated that was 150. Data was collected using structured questionnaire that included socio-economicvariables as well the variables regarding food intake and 24 hour dietary recall that is quantitative approach was used. Results: The study revealed that, there is strong association between nutritional status of adolescent girls with mother's education and family income that is family's socio-economic status. Also it showed about 46% of the respondents were underweight, 20% were normal; almost 25% were overweight whilst 9% were obese. The minimum weight was 20 and the maximum weight was 70. The study showed that minimum BMI is 12.24, maximum BMI is 33.24 and average BMI is 21.7. Conclusion: It is concluded from the current studythat some of the adolescent girls living in Islamabad and studying in public sector colleges are malnourished, underweight or obese. Keywords: Malnutrition, prevalence, BMI (body mass index), respondents.

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