Table 5.
Adjusted linear regression for the relationship between formal and informal maternal employment and child BMI Z-score in selected low- and middle-income countries*
| Mean BMI Z-score | Formal employment† | Informal employment† | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Country | Year | N | β | sd ‡ | β | 95 % CI‡ | β | 95 % CI‡ |
| Armenia§ | 2010 | 1329 | 0·7 | 1·6 | −0·21 | −0·54, 0·12 | −0·51 | −1·1, 0·062 |
| Bangladesh | 2014 | 6518 | −0·7 | 1·2 | −0·095 | −0·18, −0·0067 | −0·14 | −0·33, 0·048 |
| Burkina Faso | 2010 | 6455 | −0·5 | 1·5 | 0·091 | −0·042, 0·22 | 0·024 | −0·084, 0·13 |
| Burundi | 2010 | 3393 | −0·0 | 1·2 | 0·043 | −0·19, 0·28 | 0·034 | −0·17, 0·23 |
| Cambodia | 2014 | 4314 | −0·5 | 1·2 | 0·13 | 0·023, 0·24 | 0·043 | −0·078, 0·16 |
| Cameroon | 2011 | 4944 | 0·3 | 1·4 | 0·14 | 0·0019, 0·27 | 0·14 | 0·025, 0·26 |
| Chad | 2014 | 9873 | −0·4 | 1·4 | 0·29 | 0·17, 0·40 | 0·28 | 0·20, 0·37 |
| Colombia║,¶ | 2010 | 15 369 | 0·4 | 1·0 | 0·020 | −0·095, 0·13 | 0·17 | 0·048, 0·29 |
| Comoros | 2012 | 2226 | 0·0 | 1·8 | −0·23 | −0·52, 0·063 | −0·14 | −0·43, 0·16 |
| Congo | 2011 | 4289 | −0·1 | 1·2 | −0·011 | −0·15, 0·13 | −0·12 | −0·28, 0·042 |
| Côte d’Ivoire | 2012 | 3110 | −0·1 | 1·3 | 0·028 | −0·15, 0·21 | 0·17 | 0·022, 0·31 |
| DRC | 2014 | 7988 | −0·0 | 1·4 | 0·11 | −0·070, 0·28 | −0·039 | −0·18, 0·11 |
| DR | 2013 | 3050 | 0·3 | 1·2 | −0·11 | −0·34, 0·12 | 0·12 | −0·22, 0·46 |
| Egypt | 2014 | 14 267 | 0·4 | 1·8 | 0·16 | 0·028, 0·30 | 0·49 | 0·22, 0·76 |
| Ethiopia¶ | 2011 | 9527 | −0·3 | 1·3 | 0·11 | −0·029, 0·25 | 0·0031 | −0·088, 0·094 |
| Gabon | 2012 | 3229 | 0·3 | 1·3 | −0·13 | −0·28, 0·0092 | 0·077 | −0·086, 0·24 |
| Gambia | 2013 | 3097 | −0·5 | 1·4 | 0·15 | −0·067, 0·37 | 0·042 | −0·11, 0·19 |
| Ghana | 2014 | 2623 | −0·2 | 1·1 | 0·17 | 0·0016, 0·34 | 0·16 | −0·0013, 0·32 |
| Guinea | 2012 | 2973 | −0·2 | 1·4 | 0·00099 | −0·23, 0·24 | 0·084 | −0·098, 0·27 |
| Haiti¶ | 2012 | 3932 | −0·1 | 1·2 | 0·072 | −0·085, 0·23 | 0·11 | −0·041, 0·25 |
| Honduras | 2012 | 9531 | 0·4 | 1·0 | 0·13 | 0·068, 0·20 | 0·12 | 0·044, 0·19 |
| Kenya | 2014 | 8806 | 0·1 | 1·2 | 0·26 | 0·16, 0·36 | 0·16 | 0·074, 0·25 |
| Kyrgyz Republlic§ | 2012 | 3989 | 0·5 | 1·3 | −0·076 | −0·22, 0·065 | −0·18 | −0·42, 0·057 |
| Lesotho | 2014 | 1239 | 0·4 | 1·3 | 0·0039 | −0·24, 0·25 | −0·16 | −0·39, 0·068 |
| Liberia | 2013 | 3110 | −0·1 | 1·3 | −0·074 | −0·24, 0·094 | −0·026 | −0·16, 0·11 |
| Malawi | 2010 | 4518 | 0·5 | 1·4 | 0·011 | −0·17, 0·20 | 0·045 | −0·073, 0·16 |
| Mali | 2013 | 3680 | −0·4 | 1·5 | 0·15 | −0·024, 0·32 | 0·14 | 0·0035, 0·27 |
| Mozambique | 2011 | 9237 | 0·3 | 1·5 | 0·084 | −0·067, 0·23 | −0·047 | −0·15, 0·057 |
| Namibia¶ | 2013 | 1734 | −0·1 | 1·4 | 0·055 | −0·38, 0·49 | 0·31 | −0·069, 0·69 |
| Nepal | 2011 | 2274 | −0·5 | 1·2 | 0·15 | −0·12, 0·42 | −0·059 | −0·21, 0·092 |
| Niger | 2012 | 4838 | −0·7 | 1·5 | 0·22 | 0·066, 0·38 | 0·10 | −0·049, 0·24 |
| Nigeria | 2013 | 24 755 | −0·5 | 1·7 | −0·089 | −0·17, −0·0074 | 0·10 | 0·0015, 0·20 |
| Pakistan | 2013 | 3251 | −0·3 | 1·5 | −0·084 | −0·25, 0·085 | −0·14 | −0·37, 0·086 |
| Peru** | 2012 | 9030 | 0·6 | 1·0 | −0·039 | −0·12, 0·038 | −0·17 | −0·25, −0·096 |
| Rwanda | 2014 | 3529 | 0·6 | 1·2 | −0·28 | −0·48, −0·083 | −0·30 | −0·48, −0·13 |
| Senegal | 2014 | 5937 | −0·3 | 1·1 | 0·10 | −0·0032, 0·21 | 0·10 | −0·0075, 0·21 |
| Sierra Leone | 2013 | 4197 | 0·2 | 1·7 | −0·15 | −0·38, 0·089 | −0·079 | −0·26, 0·10 |
| Tajikistan | 2012 | 4553 | −0·1 | 1·6 | 0·098 | −0·078, 0·27 | 0·026 | −0·13, 0·18 |
| Tanzania¶ | 2010 | 6709 | 0·2 | 1·3 | 0·34 | 0·043, 0·64 | 0·40 | 0·21, 0·59 |
| Timor-Leste¶ | 2010 | 7275 | −0·5 | 1·7 | −0·11 | −0·52, 0·31 | −0·30 | −0·44, −0·17 |
| Togo | 2014 | 3136 | −0·2 | 1·1 | 0·12 | −0·022, 0·26 | 0·047 | −0·098, 0·19 |
| Uganda | 2011 | 2046 | 0·1 | 1·3 | 0·23 | 0·037, 0·42 | 0·087 | −0·091, 0·26 |
| Yemen | 2013 | 13 713 | −0·7 | 1·4 | −0·11 | −0·27, 0·054 | 0·032 | −0·084, 0·15 |
| Zambia | 2014 | 11 138 | 0·2 | 1·4 | −0·12 | −0·22, −0·025 | −0·069 | −0·14, 0·0065 |
| Zimbabwe | 2011 | 4237 | 0·3 | 1·2 | 0·028 | −0·11, 0·17 | 0·026 | −0·075, 0·13 |
| Total/pooled β | 268 968 | −0·065 | 1·4 | 0·042 | 0·0020, 0·082 | 0·033 | −0·010, 0·076 | |
DRC, Democratic Republic of Congo, DR, Dominican Republic.
Country-specific β coefficients are estimated using linear regression. All models were adjusted for maternal age (years), marital status (married, not married), number of household members, child’s age (months), child’s sex and proxy substitute childcare provider (yes, no). Models which did not retain the employment ×education interaction term were also adjusted for maternal education (less than primary level of education, at least primary level of education). Pooled coefficients are generated using meta-analysis and pool estimates across all low- and middle-income countries.
Type of employment was based on four indicators: (i) employment during the last 12 months (yes, no); (ii) aggregate occupation category (skilled, unskilled, unemployed); (iii) type of earnings (cash only, cash and in-kind, in-kind only, unpaid); and (iv) seasonality of employment (all year, seasonally/occasionally).
Small cell sizes resulted in missingness in some overweight models. These observations were retained in the above models where BMI Z-score was the outcome: Armenia (childcare proxy n 1); Bangladesh (marital status n 79); Burundi (childcare proxy n 8); Ghana (childcare proxy n 19); Mali (childcare proxy n 14); Nepal (childcare proxy n 18, marital status n 4); Pakistan (childcare proxy n 26); Tajikistan (childcare proxy n 12); Uganda (childcare proxy n 24).
Maternal education level was dichotomized as less than secondary level of education and at least secondary level of education.
Employment type based on employment status, occupation and earnings only because seasonality of employment was not queried in this survey.
Includes employment×education interaction term.
Employment type based on employment status, type of earnings and seasonality only because occupation type was not queried in this survey.