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Accepted manuscript

Understanding the determinants of malnutrition among adolescent girls in Pakistan: What needs to be done?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 April 2025

Saira Zafar
Affiliation:
Health Services Academy, Park Road, Chak Shahzad, Islamabad 44000, PAKISTAN
Babar Tasneem Shaikh*
Affiliation:
Health Services Academy, Park Road, Chak Shahzad, Islamabad 44000, PAKISTAN
*
*CORRESPONDING AUTHOR: Dr Babar Tasneem Shaikh, Professor of Public health Health Services Academy, Park Road, Chak Shahzad, Islamabad 44000, PAKISTAN

Abstract

Adolescent girls are vulnerable and deserve utmost attention to complement their nutrition. This scoping review endeavors to identify the determinants of malnutrition among adolescent girls in Pakistan, and to comprehend the interventions to improve their health and nutritional status. This review of the literature was conducted using Google scholar, PubMed/Medline, Scopus and Web of Science for the published articles between the years 2015-2024. MeSH terms used for search were: adolescent, youth, health, malnutrition, nutrition interventions, systems approach. In addition, the reports from WHO, UN, World Bank, Government of Pakistan and other organizations were also critically reviewed. Moreover, this paper has used Pathways framework which advocates multi-sectoral approaches for poverty reduction. In most developing countries, the compromised nutritional status of adolescent girls, compounded by poverty, has life-long health and economic consequences and their infants have nutritional deficits as well. They are expected to grow as stunted children. Evidence is well elucidated that nutrition sensitive and nutrition specific interventions can improve their nutritional status and subsequent generations. There is a dire need to involve key stakeholders from health, education, nutrition, population, women development, social welfare and other relevant sectors. It is imperative to design interventions for adolescent girls in the country’s context to break the intergenerational cycle of malnutrition and to improve the economic productivity. Political commitment and effective governance along with policy coherence is required for their healthy transitions into adulthood.

Type
Review Article
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of The Nutrition Society

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