Antenatal Care Utilization and its Impact on Low Birth weight in India: Evidences from NFHS-5

Low birthweight (LBW) is a critical public health concern in lower-middle-income countries. Despite various efforts to improve maternal healthcare utilization, universal access to Antenatal Care (ANC) remains a challenge in India. This paper examines the association between ANC utilization and LBW outcomes using data from the fifth National Family Health Survey About 18 percent of the sampled children were born with LBW, and only one-fourth of the women received complete ANC services during this period. The results from logistic regression analysis indicate that the likelihood of LBW was significantly lower among children whose mothers received adequate ANC, even after adjusting for socioeconomic and demographic variables. These findings suggest that expanding access to affordable and quality ANC services can be an effective strategy for reducing LBW incidence. Furthermore, targeted interventions for socioeconomically vulnerable women are essential to improve ANC uptake and combat LBW prevalence.