The health and nutritional status of many urban slum dwellers in the developing world is said to be deteriorating. The nutritional profile of 328 adult, nonpregnant women from the slums of Dinajpur, Bangladesh, confirms this. Results of a cross-sectional survey showed that approximately half the women were acutely malnourished and all but six were anaemic. This, despite the fact that the slums of Dinajpur are considered relatively ‘better-off’ than many in the developing world; most families having permanent land tenureship, and access to basic education and health services.
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