Table 1.
Operational definition and categorisation of selected explanatory variables for both NDHS 2006 and NDHS 2011
| Variables | Definitions and category |
|---|---|
| Community level factors | |
| Development regions (Administrative) | Developmental regions (1 = Far-Western; 2 = Mid-Western; 3 = Western; 4 = Central; 5 = Eastern) |
| Ecological regions | Ecologically defined area. Division according to ecological zone (3 = Mountain; 2 = Hill; 1 = Terai) |
| Residence | Residence type (1 = Urban; 2 = Rural) |
| Antenatal care visits in the cluster | Any antenatal care service received by mother during pregnancy (0 = Yes; 1 = No) |
| Delivery assisted by trained health workers in the cluster | Birth assistance during delivery in the cluster (0 = Yes/Some; 1 = No/None) |
| Postnatal check-up/care received by mothers in the cluster | Postnatal check-up by mothers after delivery (0 = Yes; 1 = No) |
| Socio economic factors | |
| Maternal education | Maternal formal years of schooling/education (0 = No education; 1 = primary; 2 = secondary; 3 = Higher) |
| Paternal education | Father’s formal years of schooling/education (0 = No education; 1 = primary; 2 = secondary; 4 = Higher) |
| Religion | Religion of parents (1 = Hindu; 2 = Buddhist; 3 = Muslim; 4 = Christian/Kirat/other) |
| Maternal literacy | Mother’s literacy level (1 = able to read whole sentence or only parts; 2 = unable to read at all) |
| Paternal occupation | Father’s employment status (0 = Unemployed; 1 = Employed; 2 = Don’t know) |
| Maternal occupation | Mother’s employment status (0 = Unemployed; 1 = employed) |
| Wealth index | Household index of amenities/families economic status (1 = Poorest; 2 = Poorer; 3 = Middle; 4 = Richer; 5 = Richest) |
| Biomass use (cooking fuel) | Types of cooking fuel used in the family (1 = relatively non-polluting; 2 = relatively high polluting) |
| Proximate determinants | |
| Mother’s age at child birth | Maternal age at childbirth as categorical variable (1 = ≤16 years; 2 = 17–21 years; 3 = ≥22 years) |
| Mother’s age at marriage | Maternal age at first marriage as categorical variable (1 = ≤16 years; 2 = 17–21 years; 3 = ≥22 years) |
| Maternal Marital Status | Maternal marital status (0 = never married; 1 = Currently married; 2 = Widowed; 3 = Divorced/Separated) |
| Decision making on own health care need | Decision making capacity of mothers on her own health care needs (1 = Respondent alone; 2 = Respondent and husband/partner/other; 3 = Husband/partner alone; 4 = Someone else) |
| Decision making capacity on money expenditure | Decision making capacity of mothers on money expenditure. (1 = Respondent alone; 2 = Respondent and husband/partner/other; 3 = Husband/partner alone; 4 = Someone else) |
| Maternal BMI (kg/m2) | Maternal BMI as per WHO classification (1 = Underweight (<18.50); 2 = Normal range (18.50–24.99); 3 = Overweight/Obese- at risk (>25.0) aMaternal BMI Asian (1 = Underweight (<18.49); 2 = Normal range (18.5–24.99); 3 = Overweight/Obese- at risk (>25.0) |
| Sex of child | Sex of infant (0 = Male; 1 = Female) |
| Birth order/rank | Birth rank of infant as a categorical variable (1 = 1st birth rank; 2 = 2nd or 3rd birth rank; 3 = ≥4th birth rank) |
| Birth interval | Succeeding birth interval (0 = ≤24 months; 1= > 24 months) Preceding birth interval (0 = ≤24 months; 1= > 24 months) |
| Baby’s size at birth (Birth size defined by baby’s birth weight) | Subjective assessment of the respondent on the baby’s birth size (1 = very large/larger than average (>3000 g); 2 = average (2500 to 3000 gm); 3 = very small/smaller than average (<2500 g)) |
| Place of delivery | Delivery place (0 = Home; 1 = Health Facility) |
| Mode of delivery | Mode of delivery (1 = Non-caesarean section/Normal/vaginal; 2 = caesarean section) |
| Delivery assistant by | Type of delivery assistance (1 = Professionals (Doctors, Nurses and Midwives; 2-Traditional births attendants (TBAs); 3 = combined; 4 = No assistance) |
| Currently Breastfeeding | Breastfeeding status during the time of interview (1 = yes; 2 = No) |
aMaternal BMI Asian was used in this study