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Are diarrhoea control programmes likely to reduce childhood malnutrition? Observations from rural Bangladesh

A Briend1, K Z Hasan, K M Aziz

  • 1International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh.

Lancet (London, England)
|August 5, 1989
PubMed

Insights

Diarrhoea temporarily impacts growth in young Bangladeshi children. However, children recover from non-bloody diarrhoea, suggesting long-term nutritional status is unlikely to improve through diarrhoea control alone.

Area of Science:

  • Child Health
  • Nutritional Science
  • Pediatrics

Background:

  • Diarrhoea is a significant health concern for children in developing countries.
  • Understanding the long-term impact of diarrhoea on child growth is crucial for public health interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To examine the relationship between diarrhoea history and growth in rural Bangladeshi children aged 6-35 months.
  • To determine if growth deficits following diarrhoea are transient or persistent.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of 1772 3-month intervals of child growth data.
  • Comparison of weight gain and linear growth in intervals with and without diarrhoea.
  • Assessment of catch-up growth following non-bloody diarrhoea episodes.

Main Results:

  • Children experienced lower weight gain and linear growth during intervals with diarrhoea.
  • Deficits in weight and height gain were not apparent a few weeks after non-bloody diarrhoea episodes.
  • Catch-up growth was observed after non-bloody diarrhoeas.

Conclusions:

  • The impact of diarrhoea on child growth appears to be transient.
  • Efforts focused solely on diarrhoea control may not significantly improve long-term nutritional status in this population.
  • Further research into other factors affecting child nutrition is warranted.

Keywords:
AnthropometryAsiaBangladeshBiologyChild DevelopmentChild MortalityCorrelation StudiesDemographic FactorsDeveloping CountriesDiarrheaDiarrhea, InfantileDiseasesEnvironmentFood SupplyGrowthInfant MortalityMalnutrition--determinantsMeasurementMortalityNatural ResourcesNutrition DisordersPopulationPopulation CharacteristicsPopulation DynamicsResearch MethodologyRural PopulationSouthern AsiaStatistical StudiesStudies

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