Age-Based Anthropometric Cutoffs Provide Inconsistent Estimates of Undernutrition: Findings from a Cross-Sectional Assessment of Late-Adolescent and Young Women in Rural Pakistan

Ambiguity around age ranges for adolescence and adulthood can make the application of age-based nutrition cutoffs confusing. We examined how estimates generated using the age-based anthropometric cutoffs for adolescent girls (10 to <19 y) and women of reproductive age (15–49 y) compared between late-adolescent and young women, and determined how application of both cutoffs affected late-adolescents’ estimates. Using cross-sectional data from participants aged 15–23 y in the Pakistan-based Matiari emPowerment and Preconception Supplementation (MaPPS) Trial (n = 25,447), notably large differences in estimates were observed for stunting (30.5% and 7.9% for late-adolescent and young women, respectively; P < 0.001) and thinness (9.3% and 30.8%, respectively; P < 0.001). When both cutoffs were applied to adolescents’ data, estimate differences were maintained. With each year of age, the difference for stunting increased and thinness decreased. Given the discrepancies observed both between and within groups, clarity around application of anthropometric cutoffs for youth (aged 15–24 y) is needed. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT03287882.