[Seasonal anthropometric variations in adults of 2 different West African populations]

Results of nutritional surveys carried out during the wet and dry seasons in the South of Mali and the North of Senegal (Ferlo) reveal that adults in both areas experience seasonal weight variations of about 4%. These variations are related to the regular occurrence of food shortages during the rainy season. The circumstances in which these food shortages occur are not the same in the two communities: while the nomadic herders of Ferlo can significantly reduce energy outlay by resting during the rainy period, the Malian farmers, on the contrary, must work harder because their agricultural tasks are most demanding in this season. In conclusion, we stress the need to take this phenomenon into account in agricultural development projects and to overcome shortages provoked by the shift in peasants' habits from subsistence agriculture to cash crops.