Childhood malnutrition and growth in a rural area of Western Kenya

Abstract

An anthropometric survey was carried out on 1,383 school students aged 5-17 years in Suba district (a rural area of western Kenya). Body size and proportion were computed from height, weight, sitting height, arm circumference, and skinfolds. The aim of the study was to evaluate patterns of growth and nutritional status of the Luo population by assessment of the prevalence and trends of malnutrition among children and adolescents. Very few age-groups show significant sex differences for height, body weight, and arm muscle area. However, there are several differences in skinfold thicknesses and arm circumference, always with higher mean values in girls. Analysis of the nutritional status (weight-for-age, height-for-age, and BMI-for-age) shows significant differences among the age-groups in both sexes. Boys present lower Z-scores than girls and there are higher percentages of malnourished subjects (stunted and underweight) among the males. The Luo data were compared with those of other African populations. Their body dimensions, nutritional status, and growth are similar to those of the other sub-Saharan samples. In conclusion, the Luo children are generally undernourished at the older ages: adolescents (11-16 years of age) show the most severe undernutrition and the highest percentages of undernourished subjects. In addition to the higher risk of undernutrition in teenagers, an emerging problem of over-nutrition is evident among the younger age-groups, with a higher prevalence in females. These findings are discussed in light of sexual dimorphism in sensitivity to adverse environmental conditions.

Use of upper arm anthropometry, upper arm muscle area-by-height (UAMAH) and midupper- arm-circumference (MUAC)-for-height as indicators of body composition and nutritional status among children

“…Sex related effects might be controlling muscularity of boys and girls and it is the reason behind greater muscularity of boys. Similar trends were reported among Indian (Chowdhury and Ghosh 2009;Basu et al 2010;Sen et al 2011;Sen and Mondal 2013;Singh and Mondal 2014), Argentinean (Bolzan et al1999), South Korean (Kim et al 1999), Kenyan (Semproli and Gualdi-Russo 2007), Zimbabwean (Olivieri et al 2008), Turkish ) and Nigerian (Senbanjo et al 2014) children. The comparison of age-and sex-specific mean values of muscularity of children of the present study with their American counterparts (Frisancho 1981) reflects a very poor nutritional status.…”

“…The comparison of age-and sex-specific mean values of muscularity of children of the present study with their American counterparts (Frisancho 1981) reflects a very poor nutritional status. The age-specific mean values of the children were also observed to be distinctly lower than those reported from Zimbabwean (Olivieri et al 2008), Argentinean (Bolzan et al 1999), Kenyan (Semproli and Gualdi-Russo 2007) and Turkish (Çiçek et al 2014) children. The age-and sex-specific mean values of UMA among boys and girls in the present study were also observed to be distinctly below the mean values reported from similar studies among Santal Ghosh 2009), Bengali Muslim (Sen et al 2011), Mishing (Sikdar 2012) and Sonowal Kachari (Singh and Mondal 2014).…”

Dietary Patterns in Pregnancy and Effects on Nutrient Intake in the Mid-South: The Conditions Affecting Neurocognitive Development and Learning in Early Childhood (CANDLE) Study

“…The literature on gender differences in nutritional status and gender influences on child outcomes illustrates a non-uniform pattern. Studies in sub-Saharan Africa, for example, report higher levels of stunting among boys (Semproli and Gualdi-Russo, 2007;Wamani et al, 2007;Goon et al, 2011), while studies from elsewhere have recorded higher levels for girls (Chowdbury et al, 2008). Although the literature on malnutrition seems to suggest that the differences in the manner in which boys and girls are treated may help one gender overcome early adversity, this did not seem to be the case in the current study.…”

“…Various individual and environmental variables have been associated with an elevated risk of experiencing poor nutritional status. Important differences have been highlighted in the prevalence of stunting among boys and girls (Badenhorst et al, 1993;Lwambo et al, 2000;Semproli and Gualdi-Russo, 2007;Acham et al, 2008;Omigbodun et al, 2010;Goon et al, 2011;Senbanjo et al, 2011) although there are substantial variations in regional trends. Moreover, patterns observed among school-age populations are similar to those reported at younger ages (Wamani et al, 2007).…”

Mixed‐longitudinal growth of breastfeeding children in Moroto District, Uganda (Karamoja subregion). A loss of biological resiliency?

“…The most salient of these effects in Karamoja today are widespread malnutrition, endemic disease, and chronic psychosocial stress, all of which have demographic consequences that are mediated in part through human growth and development. Child growth, in particular, is one of our best predictors of morbidity risks incurred by subadults as well as of the probability of their surviving to reproductive age (Prentice and Paul, 2000;Semproli and Gualdi-Russo, 2007;Simondon et al, 2007), and we use it here as evidence of increased selection pressures operating against pastoralists in East Africa since the last decades of the 20th century.…”