Nutritional status of urban Nigerian school children relative to the NCHS reference population

The present study assessed the growth problems in an indigenous African population of Nigerian urban public school children. The study population consisted of 1390 Nigerian children (predominantly Igbo), 718 boys and 672 girls, ages 4-10 years. Compared to the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) reference population, the Nigerian children had an excess prevalence of both short stature and underweight. The prevalence of short stature was 14.2% for the boys and 17.4% for the girls. Approximately 20% of the children were underweight whereas less than 1% were considered overweight. These data demonstrate an excess of both acute and chronic malnutrition relative to the NCHS reference population.