I . Skinfold thickness and body density were measured on 105 young adult men and women 2. The correlation coefficients between the skinfold thicknesses, either single or multiple, A simple method of assessing quantitatively the fat content of the human body, which could be used not only in laboratories and in hospital, but in field studies and in general medical practice, would be invaluable. Methods in use at present, based on measurements of body density, body water or body potassium, can be applied only in the laboratory and usually to small numbers of subjects.Several previous papers have suggested relationships between one of the accepted methods of determining body fat and a simpler technique which could be widely applied. As early as 1921, Matiegka (1921) formulated an equation for calculating body fat from measurements of surface area and six skinfold thicknesses. Brotek & Keys (1951) were the first to use the relationship between skinfold thickness and body density for assessing fat content. The skinfolds chosen were not ideal and their formula has not been widely used. Pascale, Grossman, Sloane & Frankel (1956) in the USA produced an equation, and PaPizkovL (1961 a ) in Czechoslovakia a nomogram, for predicting fat content from skinfold thicknesses. Steinkamp, Cohen, Gaffey, McKay, Bron, Siri, Sargent & Isaacs (196 j ) gave predictive equations based on measurements of body circumferences and skinfold thicknesses on 167 subjects in California. The only comparable attempt on a British population, to our knowledge, is a study on twenty-four hospital patients, measurements being made of total body water and skinfold thickness (Fletcher, 1962).Information about a wide range of body types in population groups in Britain is required. The present paper describes a study on 105 young adults and 86 adolescents. By means of results from measurements by anthropometry including skinfold thicknesses and body density, an attempt has been made to formulate simple equations for the prediction of the quantity of fat in the body. The subjects were of varying body build-thin, intermediate, plump, but very few were obese.https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms. https://doi

The impact of a water, sanitation and hygiene education intervention project on diarrhoeal morbidity in children under 5 years old was evaluated in a rural area of Bangladesh. Data were collected throughout 1984-1987, covering both pre- and post-intervention periods, from an intervention and a control area. The 2 areas were similar with respect to most socio-economic characteristics and baseline levels of diarrhoeal morbidity. The project showed a striking impact on the incidence of all cases of diarrhoea, including dysentery and persistent diarrhoea. By the end of the study period, children in the intervention area were experiencing 25% fewer episodes of diarrhoea than those in the control area. This impact was evident throughout the year, but particularly in the monsoon season, and in all age groups except those less than 6 months old. Within the intervention area, children from households living closer to handpumps or where better sanitation habits were practised experienced lower rates of diarrhoea. These results suggest that an integrated approach to environmental interventions can have a significant impact on diarrhoeal morbidity.

Six anthropometric indicators based on weight, height, arm circumference (AC), and age were examined to predict mortality risk of children aged 12-59 mo in a rural area of Teknaf, Bangladesh. In the period 1981-85, 9861 measurements at 6-mo intervals were made on 2449 children. For all indices mortality risk was greater in the first 3 mo than in the second 3 mo in severely malnourished children. Mortality discriminating power of the indicators in terms of sensitivity and specificity was highest for AC and AC for age and lowest for weight-for-height. Logistic regression analysis showed that the predictive power of weight-, height-, and age-based indicators improved after adding AC whereas predictive power of AC did not improve after adding weight-based indicators. The relative risk of death in children with ACs measuring less than or equal to 120 mm was 12 times higher than in those whose ACs measured greater than 140 mm.

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This study examines the effect of maternal personal and domestic hygiene on the incidence of diarrhoea in children aged 6-23 months from rural areas around Teknaf, Bangladesh. The intervention area received augmented water supply through handpumps and health education while the control area received no project inputs. From July 1980 to June 1983, diarrhoea incidence was recorded weekly while mothers' personal and domestic hygiene was observed yearly. Annual incidence of diarrhoea in 314 children from the intervention area and 309 children from the control area was analysed in relation to maternal personal and domestic hygiene, controlling for education and occupation of household head and household size. Results show that, in both areas, use of handpump water for drinking and washing, removal of child's faeces from the yard, and maternal handwashing before handling food and after defaecation of self and child, observed together, decreased yearly diarrhoea incidence in children by more than 40% compared to children living in households where none or only one of these practices was observed.

The effect of zinc supplementation on intestinal permeability changes and protein loss was studied in 32 children aged between 1 Zinc is a micronutrient that is commonly deficient in children in developing countries. Loss of zinc occurs in infants with acute diarrhoea.7 Furthermore, hypozincaemia and low rectal mucosal zinc concentrations have been shown in cases of childhood chronic diarrhoea,8 9 although it was not clear whether the mucosal injury associated with these conditions resulted in such a loss. Zinc supplementation in patients with diarrhoea has been shown, however, to improve the mucosal integrity and is associated with significant reduction in diarrhoea attack rates, duration of diarrhoea, and stool volume, particularly when the patients are undernourished.6 The present study also aimed to explore the inter-relationship between gut permeability changes and enteric protein loss and to determine if zinc supplementation affects these changes. MethodsForty three boys and girls aged 1-12 years with a history of bloody mucoid diarrhoea of less than three days' duration were initially enrolled in the study. Microscopic examination of the stools of these patients suggested shigellosis.10 Children with obvious systemic illness -for example, pneumonia, meningitis, leukaemoid reaction,11 severe malnutrition (<65% weight for age according to the National Center for Health Statistics), otitis media, and distension of the abdomen -were excluded from the study. All An intestinal permeability test using a freshly prepared solution containing 5 g lactulose with 0 5 g lactose (7.5 ml of Duphalac, Duphar Labs, Southampton, UK) and 1 g mannitol made up to 20 ml with 1% chloroform water was performed using the method described by Behrens et al,13 starting soon after admission when rehydration had been accomplished. All patients were hydrated and were made to empty their bladder before the test dose was offered. Adhesive paediatric urine bags (Downs Ltd, London, UK) containing a drop of 20% (vol/vol) chlorhexidine gluconate to prevent bacterial degradation of the probes were applied to the clean perineum to collect all urine samples over the next five hour period for subsequent measurement of the markers by an automated enzyme assay using Cobas-bio (Switzerland).After this test, two charcoal tablets (500 mg, homogenised in 15 ml water) were given orally. Once the charcoal marker had appeared in the stool and the patients were clinically settled after full rehydration, a 48 hour balance study (first balance study), as previously described,4 was begun with a diet of known compositions (Table I). Food was weighed to an accuracy of 0-1 g on a Toledo scale (Ohaus, Dial Og) and was offered freely. The amounts offered and left over were measured and the difference was recorded as the amount consumed. None of our patients was breast fed. All patients received nalidixic acid (55 mg/kg per day in four divided doses for five days), as Shigella species isolated from their stools or rectal swabs, or both, were sensiti...

To estimate inaccuracy in a diarrhoea recall survey mothers of pre-school children in Teknaf, Bangladesh were interviewed every week from July 1980 through June 1983. Because the likelihood of an episode starting on any given day of the week should be equal, we were able to quantify any deviation observed. Results show an average of 34% less diarrhoea episodes reported prior to a 48-hour recall period in any week. The amount of reporting error was (a) directly related to the length of the recall period, and (b) inversely related to the severity of diarrhoea as indicated by presence of fever and frequency of motions. This analysis reveals that weekly diarrhoea recall surveys in Bangladesh underestimate severe diarrhoea cases by 20-22% and less severe cases by 42-44%. The findings also indicate that morbidity surveys based on lengthy recall are likely to mislead health planners with regard to the magnitude of the problem and the volume of resources required to combat it.

Attendance rates at a diarrhea clinic were monitored in a defined population in rural Bangladesh. Weekly home visits were also carried out to determine diarrheal attacks in communities within six miles of the clinic. Within the first one mile radius, 90 per cent of diarrheal cases came to the clinic for treatment. At two miles the attendance fell to 70 per