title: Wealth status and sex differential of household head: implication for source of drinking water in Nigeria.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Source of potable water has implication on the population health. Availability of Improved Drinking Water Sources (IDWS) is a problem in developing countries, but variation exists across segments of the population. This study therefore examined the relationship between wealth status, sex of household head and source of potable water.
  
  
  METHODS
  The 2013 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey data was used. A representative sample of 40,680 households was selected for the survey, with a minimum target of 943 completed interviews per state covering the entire population residing in non-institutional dwelling units in the country. Households where information on drinking water sources was not reported were excluded, thus reducing the sample to 38021. The dependent and key independent variables were IDWS and Wealth Index respectively. Data were analysed using Chi-square and binary logistic regression (α = .05).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Households that used IDWS were headed by females (66.7 %) than males (58.7 %). Highest proportion of households who used IDWS was found in the rich wealth index group (76.7 %). The likelihood of using IDWS was higher in household headed by females (OR = 1.41; C.I = 1.33-1.49, p <0.001). Households that belong to rich wealth index and middle class were 5.06(C.I = 4.81-5.32, p <0.001) and 2.62(C.I = 2.46-2.78, p <0.001) respectively times more likely to IDWS than the poor. This pattern was sustained when other confounding variables were introduced into the regression equation as control.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Households headed by women used improved drinking water sources than those headed by men. However, wealth index has strong influence on the strength of relationship between sex of household head and improved drinking water sources.
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Faculty of Public Health, College of Medicine, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria.
authors.forename: Oyewale Mayowa
authors.initials: OM
authors.lastname: Morakinyo
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Medical Statistics, Faculty of Public Health, College of Medicine, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria.
authors.forename: Stephen Ayo
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Adebowale
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Faculty of Public Health, College of Medicine, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria.
authors.forename: Elizabeth Omoladun
authors.initials: EO
authors.lastname: Oloruntoba
keywords: Household head; Nigeria; Potable water; Wealth index