Table 1 Description and classification of environmental factors used in the study

Toilet facility^a

Categorical data is categorised as “Improved", "Unimproved", or "Open defecation."

Based on the WHO definition, facilities would be considered improved if any of the following occurred: flush/pour flush toilets to piped sewer systems, septic tanks, and pit latrines; ventilated improved pit (VIP) latrines; pit latrines with slabs; and composting toilets. Unimproved sanitation included: flush or pour-flush to elsewhere; pit latrine without a slab or open pit; bucket, hanging toilet, or hanging latrine. Other facilities, including households with no facility or use of bush/field, were considered as open defecation

Source of drinking water^a

Categorical data, categorised as "Improved" or "Unimproved."

Improved sources of drinking water included piped water, public taps, standpipes, tube wells, boreholes, protected dug wells and springs, and rainwater. Other sources of drinking water were regarded as unimproved

Time to get a water source

Categorical data, categorised as "On-premises", " ≤ 30 min round-trip fetching times", "31–60 min round-trip fetching times", and “over 60 min round-trip fetching times”

Time to obtain drinking water (round trip) was categorised as water on premises, less than 30 min, 30–60 min, or over 60 min

Biomass fuel used for cooking

Categorical data were categorised as "clean fuels" and "solid fuels."

Clean fuels included electricity, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), and natural gas, while charcoal, firewood, grass/straw, dung, shrubs, and agricultural crop waste represented unclean/solid fuels

Housing status

Categorical data categorise as "built from finished materials" and "built from natural or unfinished materials."

We classified houses as ‘built from finished materials’ if all of the three variables of the wall, roof, and floor materials were finished and otherwise as ‘built from natural or unfinished materials’