Is the burden of anaemia among Indian adolescent women increasing? Evidence from Indian Demographic and Health Surveys (2015–21)

Anaemia is a significant public health issue, particularly affecting women in India. However, little is known about the burden of anaemia among adolescent women in India over time. This study aimed to analyse the change in the prevalence of anaemia among adolescent women in India from 2015 to 2021 and identify the factors associated with anaemia in this population. This study used information on 116,117 and 109,400 adolescent women (aged 15–19) from the fourth and fifth round of National Family Health Survey, respectively. Bivariate statistics and multivariable logistic regression were employed to identify the statistically significant predictors of anaemia. The prevalence of anaemia among adolescent women in India increased from 54.2% (99% CI: 53.6–54.8) to 58.9% (99% CI: 58.3–59.5) over the study period (2015–16 to 2019–21). Among the 28 Indian states, 21 reported an increase in the prevalence of anaemia. However, the levels of increase varied across the states. While Assam, Chhattisgarh, and Tripura showed a substantial rise of 15 percentage points, the states of Punjab, Karnataka, Telangana, Bihar, and Madhya Pradesh recorded a marginal increase of less than 5 percentage points. Notably, Uttarakhand and Kerala exhibited a decline in anaemia prevalence during the study period. Additionally, the number of states with anaemia prevalence exceeding 60%, doubled from 5 in 2015–16 to 11 in 2019–21. Several factors were found associated with anaemia, including having more than one child (AOR: 1.33, 99% CI: 1.16–1.51), having no education (AOR: 1.25, 99% CI: 1.16–1.34), belonging to Scheduled Tribes (AOR: 1.47, 99% CI: 1.40–1.53), being in the lowest wealth quintile (AOR: 1.17, 99% CI: 1.12–1.23), year of survey (AOR: 1.26, 99% CI: 1.23–1.29), and being underweight (AOR: 1.10, 99% CI: 1.07–1.12). In conclusion, the rise in anaemia prevalence among adolescent women in India suggests the need for targeted interventions to mitigate the burden of anaemia and enhance the overall health of this population.