Dietary patterns of children aged 6–24 months assisted by the Bolsa Família Program

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-26
Author(s):  
Marília Moura e Mendes ◽  
Giovana de Montemor Marçal ◽  
Ana Elisa Madalena Rinaldi ◽  
Nassib Bezerra Bueno ◽  
Telma Maria de Menezes Toledo Florêncio ◽  
...  

Abstract Objective: This study aimed to verify the association between socioeconomic and demographic characteristics and dietary patterns (DP) of children assisted by the Conditional Cash Transfer Program, Bolsa Família (BFP). Design: This is a cross-sectional study. DP were defined using a principal component analysis. The association of the predictive variables and DP was modelled using multilevel linear regression analysis. Setting: This study was conducted in six municipalities from the State of Alagoas, Brazil. Participants: The participants were children aged 6–24 months who were assisted by the BFP. Results: A total of 1,604 children were evaluated. Four DPs were identified (DP1, DP2, DP3, and DP4). DP1 is composed of traditional Brazilian food. DP2 is formed mostly from ultra-processed foods (UPF). DP3 consists of milk (non-breast) with added sugar, while DP4 consists of fresh and minimally processed foods. Caregivers with higher age and education (β = −0.008; 95%CI: [−0.017; −0.000]; β = −0.037; 95%CI: [−0.056; −0.018], respectively) were negatively associated with DP2. We observed a negative association between households with food insecurity (β = −0.204; 95%CI: [−0.331; −0.078]) and DP4 and a positive association between caregivers with higher age and education (β = 0.011; 95%CI: [0.003; 0.019]; β = 0.043; 95%CI: [0.025; 0.061], respectively) and DP4. Conclusion: This study identified the association between socioeconomic inequities and DP early in life, with an early introduction of UPF, in children assisted by BFP in the State of Alagoas.

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giovana de Montemor Marçal ◽  
Marília Moura e Mendes ◽  
Manuela Di Guaraldi Mafra Fragoso ◽  
Telma Maria de Menezes Toledo Florêncio ◽  
Nassib Bezerra Bueno ◽  
...  

Abstract Objective: To evaluate the association between the consumption of ultra-processed foods (UPF) and the practice of breast-feeding in children under 2 years of age assisted by the conditional cash transfer programme, Bolsa Família Programme (PBF). Design: A cross-sectional study. The consumption of UPF and the practice of breast-feeding were assessed using a structured 24-h recall. Associations were calculated using hierarchical Poisson regression, adjusted at the last level by socio-economic, demographic and environmental variables from previous hierarchical levels. Setting: Six counties from the state of Alagoas, Brazil. Participants: Children aged 6−24 months, assisted by PBF. Results: A total of 1604 children were evaluated, 11·7% of whom were overweight, and most had consumed UPF (90·6%) in the last 24 h. The most consumed UPF were biscuits, chocolate milk and baby food with 74·8, 66·8 and 24·9%, respectively. Through multivariable analysis, an association was found between lower consumption of UPF in the continuation of breast-feeding until the second year of life (prevalence ratio (PR) 0·91, 95 % CI 0·86, 0·96) and in the first year of life (PR 0·93, 95 % CI 0·88, 0·99). Conclusions: It was found that the studied population had a high consumption of UPF, which harmed continued breast-feeding. We highlight the importance of strengthening public policies aimed at the promotion, protection and support of breast-feeding and healthy complementary feeding aimed at populations that have difficulties in physical and economic access to a healthy and adequate diet.


2014 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 829-845 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wendy Hunter ◽  
Natasha Borges Sugiyama

Welfare programs distribute benefits to citizens. Perhaps even more importantly, by conveying powerful messages about how the state views poor people, welfare programs shape people’s views about themselves as subjects or citizens. Theoretical debates on how public policies can enhance democratic citizenship inspire our study of Brazil’s Bolsa Família (Family Grant). Has this conditional cash transfer program, which forms a major point of contact between the state and millions of poor Brazilians, elevated feelings of social inclusion and agency? A prominent perspective in the welfare-state literature would not expect a positive outcome given the strict means testing and behavioral requirements entailed. Yet our focus group research with Bolsa Família recipients suggests that the program does foster a sense of belonging and efficacy. Policy design and government discourse matter. This innovative welfare program yields rich insights on alternative paths to citizenship development for middle- and low-income countries in the third wave of democracy.


Author(s):  
Armando Barrientos

This chapter examines the role that public policy initiatives—specifically anti-poverty transfers—have played in the reduction of poverty and inequality in Brazil. A number of anti-poverty initiatives are considered in turn, and not just the widely known Bolsa Familia conditional cash transfer program. The analysis establishes that such transfers—including conditional cash transfers—have proved surprisingly effective, even helping to tackle long-standing income inequality. It is recognized that explicit anti-poverty initiatives were not the only drivers of the reduced incidence of poverty and inequality: factors such as growth and improved access to labor markets also played a role. However, progress is now threatened by the recent economic and political crisis.


2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lais Baroni ◽  
Ronaldo Fernandes Santos Alves ◽  
Cristiano Siqueira Boccolini ◽  
Rebecca Salles ◽  
Raquel Gritz ◽  
...  

Abstract Objectives The “Bolsa-Família” Program (PBF) is a Brazilian conditional cash-transfer program in which families should comply with health, education, and social assistance conditionalities. The program aims to fight poverty and hunger, promoting nutrition and health services for low-income populations. This paper presents a database on the coverage of monitoring and compliance with the PBF health conditionalities in Brazil from January 2005 to July 2021. Data description Database on the PBF conditioning cash-transfer program coverage in Brazil from 2005 to 2021. It comprises information on the number of families benefited, health conditionalities, and the follow-up on vaccination and nutrition of children under seven years old. The cities and semesters are the minimal aggregation units.


2020 ◽  
Vol 36 (12) ◽  
Author(s):  
Débora Letícia Frizzi Silva ◽  
Doroteia Aparecida Höfelmann ◽  
Cesar Augusto Taconeli ◽  
Regina Maria Ferreira Lang ◽  
Camila Dallazen ◽  
...  

Abstract: Few studies have investigated the simultaneous effect of individual and contextual factors on the occurrences of anemia. This study aims to evaluate the variability of children’s hemoglobin levels from municipalities in social vulnerability and its association with factors of individual and municipal nature. This is a cross-sectional, multi-center study, with children data (12-59 months) collected from 48 municipalities of the Southern region of Brazil, that were included in the Brazil Without Poverty Plan. Individuals’ data were collected using a structured questionnaire, and secondary and ecological data of children’s municipalities were collected via national surveys and institutional websites. The outcome was defined as the hemoglobin level obtained by HemoCue. A multilevel analysis was performed using Generalized Linear Models for Location Scale and Shape using R, with a 5% significance level. A total of 1,501 children were evaluated. The mean hemoglobin level was 12.8g/dL (95%CI: 12.7-12.8), with significant variability between municipalities. Lower values of hemoglobin were observed in children who lived in municipalities with a higher urbanization rate and a lower number of Community Health Agents, in relation to the reference categories. At the individual level, lower hemoglobin values were identified for children under 24 months, not enrolled at daycares, who were beneficiaries of the conditional cash transfer program and diagnosed with underweight. The results shed light on important factors at the municipal and the individual levels that were associated to the hemoglobin levels of children living in municipalities in social vulnerability.


2014 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mônica Viegas Andrade ◽  
Flávia Chein ◽  
Rafael Perez Ribas ◽  
Jaume Puig-Junoy

This paper investigates the impact of the Bolsa Familia program, a conditional cash transfer program focused on Brazilian poor families, on children‘s nutritional status in a context of low monitoring of conditionalities. The analysis is carried out using data from a baseline survey conducted in 2005, the “Bolsa Família” Impact Evaluation Research. The evaluation is made using the Propensity Score Matchingtechnique. Besides considering observational differences between beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries of Bolsa Família Program, our empirical strategy also addresses some concerns about informational issues in order to take into account potential endogeneity of the decision to participate in the Program. Our final results show a positive effect of Bolsa Família Program on children nutritional status only whencontrolling for the informational bias and for those children fulfilling educational requirements; however, this positive impact on nutritional status is restricted to BMIfor-age but does not affect height-for-age.


2017 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 86-97
Author(s):  
Mônica A. Haddad ◽  
Joshua Hellyer

This article examines how beneficiaries of Brazil’s Bolsa Família (BFP) conditional cash transfer program find employment in a Brazilian municipality and assesses their participation in decent work. Using Belo Horizonte as a case study, researchers conducted a survey of BFP recipients. The article compares responses of informally and formally employed workers to assess how their employment meets the criteria of the decent work agenda. Results indicate no significant difference between perceptions of formal and informal employees concerning discrimination and poor working conditions. Findings lead to recommendations about formalization of employment, coordination with existing job training programs, child care, and transportation.


2017 ◽  
Vol 44 (2) ◽  
pp. 206-221 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paloma Santana Moreira Pais ◽  
Felipe de Figueiredo Silva ◽  
Evandro Camargos Teixeira

Purpose The Brazilian Government created the Bolsa Familia program to combat poverty and the insertion of so many children into the labor market. This program is an income transfer program subject to certain conditions such as a minimum school attendance for children under 17 years of age. In 2006, almost half of the people with an income per capita of R$300.00 (US$139.53) per month declared that they received this benefit. Accordingly, the purpose of this paper is to analyze the impact of Bolsa Familia on child labor in Brazil in 2006. Design/methodology/approach The authors used a propensity score matching model with data from the National Household Sample Survey PESQUISA NACIONAL POR AMOSTRA DE DOMICÍLIOS (PNAD), for 2006. Findings Results indicate that the program increased the number of hours of child labor in Brazil. However, this outcome might be explained by the fact that those families who received Bolsa Familia were also those with higher socioeconomic vulnerability. Thus, they need to guarantee their survival with the income generated via child labor. Social implications The Brazilian Government needs to invest not only in monetary transfer policies but also in the improvement of the job market to create opportunities for the social development of children. Originality/value The contribution of the paper is the investigation into the effect of the Bolsa Familia program on the average time allocated to child labor; the authors find that this time allocation could be reduced by requiring a compulsory school attendance.


BMJ Open ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. e039658
Author(s):  
Julia M Pescarini ◽  
Peter Craig ◽  
Mirjam Allik ◽  
Leila Amorim ◽  
Sanni Ali ◽  
...  

IntroductionBrazil’s Bolsa Familia Program (BFP) is the world’s largest conditional cash transfer scheme. We shall use a large cohort of applicants for different social programmes to evaluate the effect of BFP receipt on premature all-cause and cardiovascular mortality.Methods and analysisWe will identify BFP recipients and non-recipients among new applicants from 2004 to 2015 in the 100 Million Brazilian Cohort, a database of 114 million individuals containing sociodemographic and mortality information of applicants to any Brazilian social programme. For individuals applying from 2011, when we have better recorded income data, we shall compare premature (age 30–69) cardiovascular and all-cause mortality among BFP recipients and non-recipients using regression discontinuity design (RDD) with household monthly per capita income as the forcing variable. Effects will be estimated using survival models accounting for individuals follow-up. To test the sensitivity of our findings, we will estimate models with different bandwidths, include potential confounders as covariates in the survival models, and restrict our data to locations with the most reliable data. In addition, we will estimate the effect of BFP on studied outcomes using propensity score risk-set matching, separately for individuals that applied ≤2010 and >2011, allowing comparability with RDD. Analyses will be stratified by geographical region, gender, race/ethnicity and socioeconomic position. We will investigate differential impacts of BFP and the presence of effect modification for a combination of characteristics, including gender and race/ethnicity.Ethics and disseminationThe study was approved by the ethics committees of Oswaldo Cruz Foundation and the University of Glasgow College of Medicine and Veterinary Life Sciences. The deidentified dataset will be provided to researchers, and data analysis will be performed in a safe computational environment without internet access. Study findings will be published in high quality peer-reviewed research articles. The published results will be disseminated in the social media and to policy-makers.


2010 ◽  
Vol 14 (5) ◽  
pp. 785-792 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juliana de Bem Lignani ◽  
Rosely Sichieri ◽  
Luciene Burlandy ◽  
Rosana Salles-Costa

AbstractObjectiveTo analyse changes and predictors of change in self-reported food intake among Brazilian families that benefitted from conditional cash transfer (CCT) implemented in the Programa Bolsa Família of the Brazilian Federal Government.DesignA cross-sectional survey.SettingThe study was conducted from September to October 2007 in a nationwide representative household sample of families included in the CCT. Socio-economic variables, perception of food consumption and food insecurity were evaluated via questionnaire, which was completed during face-to-face interviews.SubjectsFive thousand households were selected from the CCT registry.ResultsFamilies reported increased consumption of all food groups analysed, mainly cereals, processed foods, meat, milk and dairy, beans and sugar. The degree of dependence on income from the CCT was positively associated with increased self-reported intake of food items such as sugar and soft drinks. A Poisson regression revealed that the fourth quartile of CCT dependence demonstrated a twofold increase in the self-reported intake of soft drinks (relative risk (RR) = 2·3, 95 % CI 1·8, 2·9) and sugar (RR = 2·5, 95 % CI 2·1, 3·1) compared with the first quartile of CCT dependence.ConclusionsGreater purchasing power of poor families increases unhealthy food choices; thus public policies should emphasise the availability of healthy food.


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