Information on the association between stunting and child development is limited from low‐income settings including Bangladesh where 36% of children under‐ 5 are stunted. This study aimed to explore differences in early childhood development (ECD) between stunted (length‐for‐age z‐score [LAZ] < −2) and nonstunted (LAZ ≥ −2) children in Bangladesh. Children (n = 265) aged 6–24 months who participated in the MAL‐ED birth cohort study were evaluated by trained psychologists at 6, 15, and 24 months of age using the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development‐III; child length and weight were measured using standard procedures. ECD scores (z‐scores derived from cognitive, motor, language and socio‐emotional skills) were compared between stunted, underweight (weight‐for‐age z‐score < −2), and wasted (weight‐for‐length z‐score < −2) children, controlling for child age and sex and maternal age, education, body mass index (BMI), and depressive symptoms. Stunted children had significantly lower ECD scores than their nonstunted peers on cognitive (P = .049), motor (P < .001), language (P < .001) and social–emotional (P = .038) scales where boys had significantly lower fine motor skills compared with girls (P = .027). Mother's schooling and BMI were significant predictors of ECD. Similar to stunting, underweight children had developmental deficits in all domains (cognitive: P = .001; fine motor: P = .039, and P < .001 for both gross motor and total motor; expressive communication: P = .032; total language: P = .013; social–emotional development: P = .017). Wasted children had poor motor skills (P = .006 for the fine motor; P < .001 for both gross motor and total motor development) compared with the nonwasted peers. Early childhood stunting and underweight were associated with poor developmental outcomes in Bangladesh.

Growth in young children is controlled through the release of several hormonal signals, which are affected by diet, infection, and other exposures. Stunting is clearly a growth disorder, yet limited evidence exists documenting the association of different growth biomarkers with child stunting. This study explored the association between different growth biomarkers and stunting in Bangladeshi children. A quasi-experimental study was conducted among 50 stunted (length-for-age Z-score (LAZ) < −2 SD) and 50 control (LAZ ≥ −2 SD) children, aged 12–18 months, residing in a Bangladeshi slum. The enrolled stunted children received an intervention package, which included food supplementation for three months, psychosocial stimulation for six months, and routine clinical care on community nutrition center at the study field site. The controls received routine clinical care only. All children were clinically screened over the study period. Length, weight, fasting blood and fecal biomarkers were measured. All biomarkers levels were similar in both groups except for oxyntomodulin at enrolment. Leptin (adjusted odds ratio, AOR: 4.0, p < 0.01), leptin–adiponectin ratio (AOR 5.07 × 10⁸, p < 0.01), insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) (AOR 1.02, p < 0.05), and gamma interferon (IFN-γ) (AOR 0.92, p < 0.05) levels were independently associated with stunting at enrolment. Serum leptin, leptin–adiponectin ratio, interleukin-6 (IL-6), IL-10, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), and fecal alpha-1-antitrypsin (AAT) levels increased significantly (p < 0.001), while IFN-γ levels significantly decreased among stunted children after six months of intervention. Leptin, leptin–adiponectin ratio, IGF-1, and IFN-γ are independently associated with stunting in Bangladeshi children. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT02839148.

(1) Background: This study aimed to investigate the existing water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) policy and practice of the study population and strengthen the evidence base by documenting changes in the WASH policy and practice over 3 years of the Rohingya refugee humanitarian crisis, Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh. (2) Methods: A cross-sectional surveillance design was followed; the sampling of the study population included the Rohingya refugee population and neighborhood host nationals who required hospitalization soon after seeking care and enrolled into the diarrheal disease surveillance in diarrhea-treatment centers. Throughout the study period of 3 years, a total of 4550 hospitalized individuals constituted the study participants. (3) Results: Among the hospitalized Rohingya refugee population; the use of public tap water increased significantly from 38.5% in year 1 to 91% in year 3. The use of deep tube well water significantly changed from 31.3% to 8.2%, and the use of shallow tube well water reduced significantly from 25.8% to 0.4%. Households using water seal latrine were 13.3% in year 1 and increased significantly to 31.7% in year 3. ORS consumption at home changed significantly from 61.5% in the first year to 82.1% in third year. Multivariable analysis demonstrated patients’ age groups at 5 to 14 years, and 15 years and more, drinking non-tube well water, soap use after using toilet, use of non-sanitary toilet facility, father’s and mother’s lack of schooling, and some and severe dehydration were significantly associated with the Rohingya refugee population enrolled into the diarrheal disease surveillance. (4) Conclusion: The findings indicate significant advances in WASH service delivery as well as outreach activities by aid agencies for the Rohingya refugee population living in settlements.

Aflatoxin can cross the blood–brain barrier, damage brain tissues, and have the potential to harm the development of the human brain. Although dietary aflatoxin exposure is common in children, there is a paucity of data on aflatoxin exposure and child developmental outcomes. The child’s cognitive, motor, and language functions were assessed using the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development-III or BSID-III at the same time points. Association between exposure to aflatoxin and subtests of BSID-III were examined using mixed-effect linear regression. Aflatoxin assays were performed on 194, 167, and 163 children at 15, 24, and 36 months of age, and chronic aflatoxin exposure was detected in 20.6%, 16.8%, and 60.7% of children, respectively. Multi-variable analyses showed that aflatoxin exposure was independently related to the children’s cognitive score (β: −0.69; 95% CI: −1.36, −0.02), receptive language score (β: −0.90; 95% CI: −1.62, −0.17), and expressive language score (β: −1.01; 95% CI: −1.96, −0.05). We did not observe any association between exposure to aflatoxin and the motor function of children. Chronic exposure to aflatoxin exposure was linked to reduced cognitive, expressive, and receptive language scores of the study children. Further research is needed in a different setting to confirm this novel finding.