[Nutritional status in the pediatric population of a rural area on the Ecuadorian coast]

To determine the effects of a diet based on carbohydrates on the nutritional status of a pediatric population through a study performed in a rural area of the province of Los Ríos (Ecuador).

We evaluated 871 Ecuadorian children from a rural environment in an ambulatory medical clinic created for the purposes of the study. Basic anthropometric measurements (weigh, height, head circumference and upper arm circumference) and clinical data from physical examination were recorded. The anthropometric measurements were compared with the growth charts used in Spanish children, which were taken as the standard reference measurements. Information on nutrition was obtained from interviews with the mothers.

A total of 871 children were evaluated (53 % boys; 47 % girls). Mean age was 6.39 years (range: 0-14 years; mode 4). Comparison of the data obtained with the standard growth charts for the Spanish pediatric population revealed significant differences in body mass index in boys aged 5-14 years and in girls aged 3-12 years and highly significant differences in boys aged 6-13 years and in girls aged 3-12 years. Significant differences in middle upper arm circumference were found in boys and girls aged 1-14 years and highly significant differences were found in boys aged 1-12 years and in girls aged 2-12 years. A middle upper arm circumference of less than 14 cm (slight malnutrition) was found in 6.67 % of boys and in 9.15 % of girls; a middle upper arm circumference of less than 12.5 cm (serious malnutrition) was found in 1.82 % of boys and in 2.82 % of girls. Nutritional interviews revealed that the overall caloric intake was approximately 1,500 cal/ day. Eight percent of calories came from carbohydrates, 15 % from fats and 5 % from proteins.

A poor diet affects the child population's nutritional status qualitatively but not quantitatively. Nutritional deficit favors the prevalence of childhood diseases that could be avoided by suitable feeding and hygiene. Because of the lack of economic and health resources, prevention is the fundamental weapon for maintaining health in underdeveloped countries. Childhood nutritional status is influenced by diet, which in turn is influenced by physical, climatic, cultural and political factors, and by stress, which is provoked by infections and parents' behavior. Nutritional status in children is a clear reflection of the socioeconomic status of a given population.