A health and nutritional profile of rural school children in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Jinabhai, C C; Taylor, Myra; Coutsoudis, Anna; Coovadia, Hoosen M.; Tomkins, Andrew; Sullivan, Keith

doi:10.1080/02724930020028920

Cited by 25 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 9 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…However, other studies in SA also report a higher prevalence of overweight and obesity among girls than among boys. [20,21] Significant differences were found in the overweight and obesity prevalence rates of white and black children, indicating that white learners are significantly more overweight and obese (19.7%) than *p<0.05 = significant overall and age-specific differences between black and white learners. † Significant gender differences.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The majority of SA studies [6,7,[20][21][22] have reported a similar prevalence for overweight and obesity among children of the same age group. The results of the National Food Consumption Survey based on the IOTF cut-off points, conducted on children between the ages of 1 and 8 years (N=2 894), showed that 6.7% of children could be classified as overweight and 3.7% as obese.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A study on 579 primary school children between the ages of 8 and 10 years in a rural magisterial district of KwaZulu-Natal found that 3.1% of the children were obese. [20] In another study undertaken by Jinabhai et al [21] in KwaZulu-Natal on 802 children between the ages of 8 and 11 years, the incidence of overweight varied between 0.4 and 13.3%, and obesity between 0.1 and 3.7%. Two sets of criteria were used by Jinabhai et al [21] to measure overweight and obesity, namely the WHO standard based on the 85th and 95th percentiles, and the IOTF criteria.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Prevalence of overweight and obesity in grade 1 learners in the North West Province of South Africa: The NW-CHILD Study

Pienaar¹

2016

S Afr J SM

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Objectives. To determine the prevalence of overweight and obesity among grade 1 learners, taking into account age, gender, race and school socioeconomic profile. Methods. The study is based on the baseline prevalence of overweight and obesity as part of the ongoing 6-year longitudinal NW Child Health Integrated Learning and Development (NW-CHILD) study. Stratified random sampling was used to identify 20 schools from four educational districts across all five quintiles of schools in the North West Province (NWP) of South Africa (SA). A total of 816 (419 boys, 397 girls) grade 1 learners with a mean age of 6.80 (standard deviation 0.39) years participated in the study, including 567 black learners, 218 white learners and 31 learners from other race groups. Standard anthropometric techniques and international body mass index (BMI) cut-off points for children were used to determine overweight and obesity. Results. A combined prevalence of overweight and obesity (Ow/Ob) of 11.1% was found, of which 7.5% were overweight and 3.6% obese. Although 7-year-old children showed a significantly higher prevalence of overweight (10.5%) than 6-year-old children (6.3%; p<0.05), obesity levels were more prevalent among 6-year-old children (4.7%) than 7-year-old children (2.3%). Although not significant, a higher prevalence of overweight (9.3 v. 6.4%) and obesity (4.3% v. 3.3%) was found in girls than boys. For the whole sample, white children displayed a significantly higher prevalence of Ow/Ob compared with black children (19.7% v. 8.8%; p<0.05), and the prevalence of Ow/Ob was higher in 4th-(18.1%) and 5th-(21.2%) quintile schools (which are associated with higher socioeconomic status (SES)) than in quintile 1 to quintile 3 schools (5. 1%, 8.7%, 6.1%, respectively; p<0.05). Conclusions. More than 10% of grade 1 learners in the NWP of SA were overweight or obese, with the prevalence being significantly lower in lower SES schools and among black children. Prevention strategies are needed to combat overweight and obesity, and the associated negative consequences of these health risks. Obesity levels in black children should also be monitored because of continuing economic transition, and taking into account increasing overweight and obesity in black South African adults.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Prevalence of overweight and obesity in grade 1 learners in the North West Province of South Africa: The NW-CHILD Study

Pienaar¹

2016

S Afr J SM

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Several recent studies in South Africa, northern Ethiopia, Brazil, Nepal, and Vietnam showed that the prevalence of VAD was high especially in rural areas. [6][7][8][9][10] According to the United Nations Children's Fund, Kenya, Benin, the Congo, Zambia, India, Afghanistan, and Myanmar still have a high prevalence of VAD, which can be as high as 70%. 5 Vitamin A deficiency is usually caused by prolonged dietary deprivation or inadequate intake as in Africa where hunger and malnutrition prevail.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Giardiasis and Poor Vitamin A Status among Aboriginal School Children in Rural Malaysia

Al-Mekhlafi¹,

Surin²,

Sallam³

et al. 2010

The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract.A cross-sectional study was carried out on 241 primary schoolchildren in Pahang, Malaysia to update their vitamin A status and to investigate the association of poor vitamin A status with their health and socioeconomic factors. All children were screened for intestinal parasitic infections. Blood samples were collected and vitamin A status was assessed. Socioeconomic data were collected by using pre-tested questionnaires. The results showed that 66 (27.4%) children had low serum retinol levels (< 0.70 μmol/L). Giardiasis and severe ascariasis were significantly associated with low serum retinol levels ( P = 0.004 and P = 0.018, respectively). Logistic regression confirmed the significant association of giardiasis with low serum retinol (odds ratio = 2.7, 95% confidence interval = 1.3-5.5). In conclusion, vitamin A deficiency is still a public health problem in rural Malaysia. Vitamin A supplementation and treatment of intestinal parasitic infections should be distributed periodically to these children to improve their health and nutritional status. 18 Iintensity of infection was graded as heavy, moderate, or light according to criteria proposed by the World Health Organization.19 Scores for intensity of infections were given to each soil-transmitted helminth species (light = 1, mild = 2, and severe = 3) and mixed infections with a worm score ≥ 5 were included in the analysis. Samples were also examined for Giardia duodenalis trophozoites or cysts by using the trichrome staining technique.Assessment of vitamin A status. Approximately 2-3 mL of venous blood were collected from each participant into tubes for biochemical analysis. Blood was left at room temperature to ensure clot formation. The tubes were then centrifuged at 3,000 rpm for 10 minutes to obtain serum that was stored at -20°C until further analysis. Serum retinol concentrations were determined using a reverse-phase high performance liquid chromatography (LC-10AD; Shimadzu, Kyoto, Japan) as described. 16,20 One hundred microliters of ethanol containing retinyl acetate as an internal standard was added to 100 μL of serum. Refiltered petroleum ether (RPE) (500 μL) was added and the mixture was mixed with a vortex mixer for 1 minute and centrifuged at 5,000 rpm for 10 minutes. A 150-μL sample from the refiltered petroleum ether layer was transferred into a clean test tube and evaporated. The extract was dissolved in 200 μL of ethanol. Eighty microliters of this mixture was injected into the high performance liquid chromatography apparatus. Methanol:water (95:5 [v/v]) was used as the mobile phase and all-trans retinol was used as the standard. For quality control, 20% of the samples were randomly selected and examined in duplicate. Serum retinol was measured in picomoles per liter.Use of serum retinol to assess vitamin A status may be influenced by inflammation and reductions in plasma retinol, which have been described during the acute phase of a wide range of infections. 21 The design of this study did not consider the inflammatory status of the...

show abstract

“…These vitamins are important for vision, growth, and immune and neurological functions (1,2) . VA deficiency (VAD) is highly prevalent and is associated with increased occurrence of infectious diseases and mortality in several developing countries, especially in sub-Saharan Africa and South-east Asia (3)(4)(5)(6)(7)(8)(9) . In addition, improving the VA status of children in these countries can reduce morbidity and mortality (10)(11)(12) .…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Status of vitamins A and E in schoolchildren in the centre west of Tunisia: a population-based study

Fares

Chahed

Feki

et al. 2010

Public Health Nutr.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Objective: The present study was undertaken to assess the status of vitamins A and E (VA and VE, respectively) and their main determinants in Tunisian children. Design: Cross-sectional population-based study. Setting: Kasserine Governorate in the centre west of Tunisia. Subjects: A total of 7407 children attending the first grade of elementary school were included. VA and VE were assessed by HPLC. Results: The prevalence of moderate VA deficiency (VAD; ,0?70 mmol/l) was 2?3 % and VE deficiency (VED; ,6?97 mmol/l) was 5?4 %. Low status in VA (0?70-1?05 mmol/l) and VE (6?97-11?61 mmol/l) was observed in 17 % and 20?2 % of children, respectively. No child exhibited severe VA or VE deficiency (,0?35 and ,2?32 mmol/l, respectively). The main predictors of VAD were advanced age (OR 5 1?65; 95 % CI 1?13, 2?41; P 5 0?05) and sickness within the past 2 weeks (OR 5 1?51; 95 % CI 1?09, 2?09; P 5 0?01). Predictors of VED were living in the peri-urban region (OR 5 1?60; 95 % CI 1?28, 2?01; P , 0?001) and sickness within the past 2 weeks (OR 5 0?75; 95 % CI 0?60, 0?94; P 5 0?01). Conclusions: Moderate VAD and VED were uncommon in Tunisian children. However, low status in VA and/or VE remains frequent. A reinforcement of the national strategies for children's nutrition and health is needed, particularly in disadvantaged regions. Supplementation of VA and VE is not necessary in Tunisia, but food fortification may be beneficial.

show abstract

A health and nutritional profile of rural school children in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Cited by 25 publications

References 9 publications

Prevalence of overweight and obesity in grade 1 learners in the North West Province of South Africa: The NW-CHILD Study

Prevalence of overweight and obesity in grade 1 learners in the North West Province of South Africa: The NW-CHILD Study

Giardiasis and Poor Vitamin A Status among Aboriginal School Children in Rural Malaysia

Status of vitamins A and E in schoolchildren in the centre west of Tunisia: a population-based study

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About