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Concurrent anemia and stunting (CAS)
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Defined when a child was both anemic and stunted. Anemia status was measured by hemoglobin level < 11 g/dL and categorized as anemic and non-anemic [3]. Stunting was measured by length-for-age < − 2 z-score and categorized as stunted and non-stunted.
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Basic (distal) factors
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Residence place
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Categorized as urban and rural.
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Region
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Categorized as mainly agrarian and mainly pastoral.
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Household wealth category
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First, household wealth index was developed by principal component analysis, using asset variables collected during the survey [19]. Then, the index was used to rank the households into low, middle and high wealth categories.
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Caregiver’s education status
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Categorized as illiterate/none, primary, and secondary and above.
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Underlying (intermediate) factors
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Water source
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Categorized as improved and unimproved.
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Toilet facility
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Categorized as improved and unimproved.
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Proximal (immediate) factors
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Child sex
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Categorized as boy and girl.
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Child age
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Categorized into < 12 and 12–23 months of age.
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Birth size
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Assessed by the subjective reporting of the mother about the size of the child at birth and categorized as large, average and small. Birth size was used as a proxy measure of birth weight.
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History of infection
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Assessed by whether the child had fever, diarrhea, or cough in the last two weeks preceding the survey. Categorized as yes and no.
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Breastfeeding duration
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Categorized as < 12 and 12–23 months.
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Early breastfeeding initiation
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Assessed by initiation of breastfeeding within the first hour after birth. Categorized as yes and no.
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Deworming tablet use
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Assessed by whether the child received deworming table within the previous 6 months. Categorized as yes and no.
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Vitamin A supplement use
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Assessed by whether the child received vitamin A supplement within in the previous 6 months. Categorized as yes and no.
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Iron supplement use
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Assessed by whether the child received iron supplement within the previous 7 days. Categorized as yes and no.
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Complementary food groups
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During the survey, caregivers were asked to recall the type of food the child was fed in the 24 h (one day) prior to the survey. The frequency of feeding during the same period was also assessed. The data were collected by trained interviewers, following the 5-Step Multiple-Pass Method. Using the WHO/UNICEF [39] and the DHS guidelines [19] for the assessment of infant and young child feeding practices, the food items were further categorized into 7 food groups: (1) meat, (2) egg, (3) milk, (4) grains, roots, and tubers, (5) legumes and nuts, (6) vitamin-A rich fruits and vegetables (VARFV), and (7) other fruits and vegetables (OFV). Using the 7 food groups above and following the WHO/UNICEF [39] and the DHS guidelines [19], dietary diversity and meal frequency indexes were determined for each child. The diversity and frequency indexes were used to determine whether the child met the WHO/UNICEF recommendations for dietary diversity and meal frequency.
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Minimum dietary diversity (MDD)
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Assessed by whether the child received ≥4 complementary food items from the 7 food groups within the previous 24 h. Categorized as yes and no [39].
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Minimum meal frequency (MMF)
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Assessed by whether the child was fed with complementary food ≥3 times if on breastfeeding, or ≥ 4 times if not on breastfeeding, within the previous 24 h. Categorized as yes and no [39].
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