AUTHOR=Shabnam Nadia , Ashraf Muhammad Azeem , Laar Rizwan Ahmed , Ashraf Rizwana 

TITLE=Increased Household Income Improves Nutrient Consumption in Pakistan: A Cross-Sectional Study

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Nutrition

VOLUME=Volume 8 - 2021

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/nutrition/articles/10.3389/fnut.2021.672754

DOI=10.3389/fnut.2021.672754

ISSN=2296-861X

ABSTRACT=The provision of high-quality food is a primary factor in ensuring adequate nourishment and preventing malnourishment-related disease in Pakistan. This study therefore aimed to quantify the impact of income on nutrient consumption in Pakistan, with the hypothesis that income has a primary role in reducing malnourishment in the developing world. To do this, we estimated nutrient–income elasticity – defined as the proportion of change in nutrient consumption in response to a change in income – for total calories, macronutrients, and micronutrients, using the nationally representative Household Integrated Economic Survey data (2010–2011) for Pakistan. Nutrient–income elasticity values were derived using several parametric regression approaches. We also assessed the nonlinearity and endogeneity of the relationship. Calorie–income elasticity was found to be significantly different from zero, irrespective of the estimation technique used. Income elasticity for macro- and micronutrients were also found to be significantly different from zero, ranging from 0.29 to 0.65. Our study therefore supports the hypothesis that increased household income likely improves nutrient consumption.