Suchergebnisse

The present work is part of a research program examining the role of the family as mediator between basic human vital functions and social macro-processes. In order to evaluate conditions affecting physical development we examined the age-normed weight and stature of 410 primary school children who were enrolled in public primary schools of the Tláhuac delegation (one of the 16 political delegations in Mexico City). All schoolchildren had received a merit scholarship for their academic performance and were from poor families. Standardization of height and weight was done using the norms of the U.S. National Center for Health Statistics. 110 of these schoolchildren (68 girls and 42 boys) lived in households led by women. Among the 48 children with growth problems 15 (31%) were from female-led households. This finding indicates that this group of students has grown up in environments that have negatively affected their growth. Among growth delayed children households headed by women were over-represented at a rate almost double that of the general population. This data from schoolchildren with scholarships from the Tláhuac program demonstrates clearly the feminization of poverty and the structural vulnerability these women who single-handedly maintain households in conditions of poverty. At least among our subjects, we can conclude that households headed by women suffer a greater degree of poverty, that this poverty is passed on between generations and that it has a negative impact on children's wellbeing (as documented through growth parameters).

The present study was carried out on 571 Ao Naga children including 289 boys and 282 girls aged 8 to 15 years from Mokokchung town, Nagaland. This study tried to find out the physical growth according to the height and weight and nutritional status according to the body mass index (BMI) following the classification by Cole et al. Our study revealed that the girls were taller than boys till 13 years and the boys became taller thereafter. As for weight, the girls were heavier during 10 to 14 years. The mean height and weight increased as the age advanced in both boys and girls. The prevalence of underweight was 30.12% and the prevalence of overweight was 2.28% among the Ao Naga children, and the girls were found to have a higher prevalence of overweight and the boys had a higher prevalence of underweight. This revealed that both underweight and overweight coexisted among the Ao Naga children from Mokokchung town, although the prevalence of overweight was not high.

SummaryA study is reported of physical growth of Jamaican schoolboys who had been admitted to hospital with severe malnutrition during infancy (index cases). Height, weight and head circumference of the index cases was compared with that of male siblings close in age (siblings), with unrelated classmates or neighbours matched for sex and age (comparisons) and with Jamaican or US growth standards. Index boys were significantly smaller in height and head circumference than comparisons and significantly smaller than sibs only in head circumference. Sibs were intermediate in stature to the index and comparison boys. When the boys were divided into three age groups there was evidence of complete catch-up in height and weight after 7 years of age, but catch-up was incomplete for head circumference in the oldest group. No significant differences in stature at follow-up of the index boys were found in relation to age when admitted to hospital.