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Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study
09:36

Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study

Published on: February 2, 2017

Some risk factors associated with overweight, stunting and wasting among children under 5 years old

Márcia R Vitolo1, Cíntia M Gama, Gisele A Bortolini

  • 1Universidade Federal de Ciências da Saúde de Porto Alegre, Porto Alegre, RS. vitolo@fffcmpa.edu.br

Jornal De Pediatria
|June 7, 2008
PubMed

Insights

Overweight and stunting are significant concerns in children under five in São Leopoldo, Brazil. Higher socioeconomic status is linked to overweight, while poor sanitation and low birth weight contribute to stunting and wasting.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatrics
  • Public Health
  • Nutrition Science

Background:

  • Childhood overweight, stunting, and wasting are critical global health issues.
  • Socioeconomic and sanitary conditions, along with maternal and child factors, are potential determinants of these anthropometric outcomes.
  • Understanding these associations is vital for developing targeted public health interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the relationship between socioeconomic status, sanitary conditions, and maternal/child factors with overweight, stunting, and wasting in children under five in São Leopoldo, Brazil.
  • To identify specific risk factors associated with each anthropometric outcome.
  • To inform public health policies and interventions.

Main Methods:

  • A cross-sectional study involving 3,957 children aged 1 month to 5 years was conducted.
  • Data on maternal and child factors were collected via questionnaire, and children's anthropometric measurements were taken.
  • Cluster analysis was employed to group areas based on socioeconomic and sanitary conditions from the 2001 National Census.

Main Results:

  • Overweight affected 9.8% of children and was associated with higher socioeconomic status, better sanitation, being a single child, and higher birth weight.
  • Wasting (2.6%) was linked to low birth weight and maternal age under 20.
  • Stunting (9.1%) was associated with low socioeconomic status, poor sanitation, multiple siblings, low birth weight, younger child age, and maternal age under 20.

Conclusions:

  • Overweight and stunting represent the primary anthropometric challenges in the studied population.
  • These findings underscore the need for prioritizing overweight and stunting in public health policies.
  • Interventions should address socioeconomic disparities, sanitation, birth weight, and maternal factors.
Abstract

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