Ravi Kumar, Shubhra Katara
Despite Government initiatives like Anemia Mukt Bharat, anemia among children increased marginally in Uttar Pradesh India's most populated state, require more efforts to meet the target. Therefore, this paper aims to explore prevalence of anemia and associated risk factors among children aged 6-59 months in Uttar Pradesh. Data for this cross-sectional study were drawn from the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5) conducted during 2019-2021. 'The study sample included 26,283 children aged 6-59 months. The bivariate and binary logistic regression analyses assessed the factors associated with child anemia. In bivariate analysis, a chi-square test was performed to determine the significant association of sociodemographic factors with child anemia in Uttar Pradesh. The prevalence of anemia in Uttar Pradesh was 67%, with the central and western regions reporting proportions higher than the state average. The prevalence of anemia was significantly higher among poor children (68%) and those whose mothers were uneducated (68.9%). Child anemia is significantly higher among children whose mothers received no antenatal care (74.6%) and those who had diarrhea (72.6%) in the last two weeks. The risk of anemia was 18% and 52% high among children who lived in more than 9-member family AOR: 1.18; CI: 1.03, 1.35 and whose mothers were anemic AOR: 1.52; CI: 1.44, 1.61, respectively. The chances of anemia were also higher among 4+ parity children AOR: 1.20; CI: 1.01, 1.43 and those who were overweight AOR: 1.42; CI: 1.15, 1.74 or stunted AOR: AOR: 1.30 CI: 1.21, 1.39. It can be concluded that anemia among children in Uttar Pradesh is a widespread issue, particularly in central and western regions, with a significantly higher prevalence among disadvantaged groups. This study highlights the need for targeted interventions addressing socio-economic disparities, antenatal care, maternal health, family size and child nutrition to reduce anemia effectively.. KEYWORDS :Logistic regression, Predictive modeling, Child anemia, NFHS-5 public health.