Leveraging connections between family planning and nutrition to improve the health of women

The global burden of malnutrition and unmet need for family planning (FP) among women of reproductive age remains high. Leveraging the epidemiological and programmatic links between FP and nutrition could help improve outcomes in both domains for women, with wider benefits to health and well-being. Here, we draw on findings from our recently concluded Family Planning and Nutrition Project, which synthesised epidemiological and programmatic linkages between FP and nutrition, alongside other related literature, to argue that limited research connecting FP and nutrition is constraining concrete investments in this area. We identify three key areas for evidence generation with the potential to advance women’s health: examining the impact of hormonal contraceptives to address anaemia caused by heavy menstrual bleeding; strengthening postpartum FP-nutrition service integration and capitalising on social protection programmes to deliver FP and nutrition-related services. Robust evidence from large-scale implementation studies focusing on these areas will be fundamental to reliably establishing the value of such approaches—including effectiveness, cost-effectiveness and key indicators such as acceptability and feasibility—and drawing further resource commitments. Investment in these approaches will help address the unique needs of women across the life course and contribute to improving women’s health outcomes globally.