EXAMINING THE DOUBLE BURDEN OF MALNUTRITION FOR PRESCHOOL CHILDREN AND WOMEN OF REPRODUCTIVE AGE IN LOW- AND MIDDLE-INCOME COUNTRIES: A SCOPING REVIEW PROTOCOL

ABSTRACT Introduction The majority of the populations in Low-and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs) are encountering the double burden of malnutrition (DBM): the coexistence of both undernutrition and overnutrition sequalae. With DBM being a new phenomenon in research, little is known about its etiology, operational definitions and risk factors influencing its manifestation. The proposed scoping review is aimed at mapping literature with regards to the DBM phenomenon among preschool children and women of reproductive age in LMICs who are among the most high-risk groups to encounter DBM. Methods A comprehensive literature search will be conducted in the following electronic databases: MEDLINE, EMBASE, Scopus, CINAHL, LILACS and ProQuest Dissertations & Thesis Global. Additionally, searches in other government and institutional sources (World Health Organization website and university repositories) and forward and backward citation tracking of seminal articles will also be done. Two reviewers will independently conduct title and abstract screening and full text screening. Similarly, data extraction and coding will independently be done by two reviewers. Information extracted from included literature will be analysed qualitatively using thematic analysis approach and reported as per the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) guidelines. Ethics and Dissemination Ethical approval is not required for this study because the review is based on literature from publicly available sources. The dissemination of our findings will be done through presentations in relevant conferences and publication in a peer-reviewed journal. Strengths and limitations To the best of our knowledge, this is the first scoping review that focuses on exploring the etiology of the double burden of malnutrition among preschool children and women of reproductive age in Low-and Middle-Income Countries. This review will encompass comprehensive literature search and will utilize a renowned thematic analysis framework to synthesis the findings of the study. The findings of this review will be important in not only mapping the current literature with regards to the double burden of malnutrition phenomenon for risk populations but also guiding secondary data analysis for our subsequent studies. The anticipated dearth of causation literature and longitudinal studies in this area of research may limit our findings, specifically in understanding the etiology of double burden of malnutrition.