PD021 - CONDITIONAL CASH TRANSFER PROGRAMS AND NUTRITIONAL OUTCOMES IN BRAZIL: AN UPDATED SYSTEMATIC REVIEW (2015–2025)

PD021

CONDITIONAL CASH TRANSFER PROGRAMS AND NUTRITIONAL OUTCOMES IN BRAZIL: AN UPDATED SYSTEMATIC REVIEW (2015–2025)

A. Da Silva^1,*, A. D. C. Maués², F. H. F. D. do Carmo², T. A.-M. Silva², A. N. Soares²

¹Health Sciences, University of Bradford, Bradford, United Kingdom, ²Health Sciences, Faculdade de Saúde Santa Casa BH, Belo Horizonte, Brazil

Rationale: To what extent do Brazil’s conditional cash transfer programs, particularly Bolsa Família, improve nutritional outcomes in vulnerable populations? Although they represent one of the largest global social nutrition interventions targeting poverty, food insecurity, and malnutrition, their net effects on child growth, diet quality, and the emerging obesity transition remain uncertain.

Methods: This systematic review followed PRISMA 2020 guidelines and included observational studies (2015–2025) identified in PubMed, LILACS, and SciELO using Boolean strategies. Thirteen studies evaluating Brazilian CCTPs and nutritional outcomes (anthropometry, dietary intake, food security) across diverse populations were included.

Results: Across 13 studies, evidence indicates a positive association between CCTP exposure and improved child nutritional status, particularly reductions in undernutrition and stabilization of stunting. However, several studies reported a double burden of malnutrition, with increases in overweight. Food security showed the most consistent benefit, with reduced household food insecurity and improved access to staple foods. Diet quality remained poor, with low fruit and vegetable intake and higher ultra-processed food consumption. Despite benefits, high methodological heterogeneity, predominance of cross-sectional designs, and variability in outcome definitions limited causal inference and effect size comparability.

Conclusion: Brazil’s CCTPs reduce food insecurity and undernutrition over 10 years, confirming population-level benefit. However, rising overweight and poor diet quality indicate a nutritional transition, suggesting income transfer alone is insufficient and requires complementary nutrition and food environment policies.

Disclosure of Interest: None declared