Sustained intake of animal-sourced foods is associated with less stunting in young children
Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 1, 2025

Author Spotlight: Studying the Impact of Maternal Dietary Deficiencies on Long-Term Offspring Health Outcomes
Published on: June 28, 2024
Sonia Zaharia1,2, Shibani Ghosh3,4, Robin Shrestha3,4
1Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, Tufts University, Boston, MA, USA. Sonia.Zaharia@tufts.edu.
Abstract:
The value of animal-sourced foods (ASFs) in providing key nutrients, particularly for child growth and where diets are of low quality, is understood mainly from cross-sectional assessment of current consumption. Longitudinal panel data from Nepal, Bangladesh and Uganda were used here to assess associations among previous (lagged) and contemporaneous ASF intake with linear growth of children aged 6-24 months. Lagged ASF consumption was significantly correlated with a 10% decline in stunting in Nepali children who consumed any ASF in the previous year, while current intake was associated with a 9% decline in stunting in Uganda. Previous consumption of two or more ASFs showed a stronger association, ranging from a 10% decline in stunting in Bangladesh to a 16% decline in Nepal. This novel lagged analysis emphasizes the need for regular and appropriate levels of ASF intake by young children to support healthy growth in resource-constrained settings.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Nature and Nurture
Dietary Connections
Environmental Influences on Intelligence
Proteins: Dietary Sources and Requirements
Regulation of Food Intake
Inflammatory Bowel Disease III: Diagnostic Studies and Management I-Nutritional Therapy
Diagnostic studies
A colonoscopy is the definitive screening test, distinguishing ulcerative colitis from other colon diseases with similar symptoms. During a colonoscopy test, inflamed mucosa with exudate ulcerations can be observed, and biopsies are taken to determine the histologic characteristics of the...

