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Updated: Oct 14, 2025
Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study
Published on: February 2, 2017
[ASSESSMENT OF PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT OF PRESCHOOL CHILDREN OF THE REPUBLIC OF KAZAKHSTAN AND RETROSPECTIVE ANALYSIS
G Aldibekova1, S Abdrakhmanova2, L Lim2
11Non-profit Joint Stock Company «Astana Medical University», Nur-Sultan; 2Corporate funddation University Medical Center «National Research Center for Maternal and Child health», Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan.
Insights
Physical development in Kazakhstan
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Anthropology
- Public Health
Background:
- Physical development trends in preschool children are crucial for assessing population health.
- Historical data from 1968-2000s provides a baseline for current trends.
- Understanding gender and regional variations is key to accurate assessment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze the physical development of preschool children (3-6 years) in Kazakhstan.
- To compare current anthropometric data with historical studies (1968-2000s).
- To evaluate findings against World Health Organization (WHO) standards.
Main Methods:
- Anthropometric measurements of 968 children aged 3-6 years from diverse regions.
- Comparative analysis of current data with historical research (1968, 1972, 1986, 2000s).
- Comparison with WHO growth standards.
Main Results:
- Boys generally showed higher body weight and length than girls, with significant differences noted at specific ages.
- No significant differences in body length and weight compared to WHO standards, except for head circumference in some age groups.
- A gradual increase in somatometric indicators observed from 1968 to 2019, indicating secular growth trends.
Conclusions:
- Kazakhstan preschool children exhibit harmonious physical development.
- Increased body length without proportional weight gain suggests acceleration with a trend towards asthenization.
- The findings highlight the need for developing regional growth standards, as WHO standards may not fully capture local variations.
Abstract:
Purpose - study of the physical development of preschool children, taking into account gender characteristics and comparison with identical data from the study of 1968, 1972, 1986, 2000s. Object of the research: 968 children aged 3-6 years, living in the central, southern and northern regions of the country, who underwent an anthropometric study using standard instruments. Also, the results were compared with the research data from 1968, 1972, 1986, 2000s. The body weight of boys 3-5 years old significantly exceeded that of girls (р<0.05). A significant difference in body length is obvious only at the age of 4 (р<0.05). The lengths of the arms and legs did not differ in both sexes, except for the length of the arms in 5-year-old boys with a significant predominance (p<0.05). On average, boys of the studied ages had higher body length indicators than girls (p>0,05). When conducting a comparative analysis of the body length and body weight of children in Kazakhstan with the WHO standards, there were no significant differences. At the same time, the head circumference of 3-year-old boys and 3-4-year-old girls exceeds the identical indicators according to WHO (р<0.05). This fact is possibly related to the climatic, ethnic and social-everyday characteristics of the children. The latter, once again indicates the need to develop regional standards, since WHO standards are likely to be a guideline. A comparative analysis of the basic indicators of the physical development of children over the period from 1968 to 2019 demonstrates a gradual increase in somatometric indicators in most age groups. The physical development of preschool children in the Republic of Kazakhstan at the present stage is quite harmonious. A retrospective analysis of the physical development of children aged 3-6 years over the past 50 years has shown a significant increase in body length, without a significant increase in body weight in modern children, which indicates the ongoing process of acceleration with a tendency to asthenization.
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