Health and nutritional status of boys aged 6 to 12 years in a children observation home

One hundred and ninety two boys in the age group 6 to 12 years, living in a Children Observation Home in Delhi were studied for their nutritional status and morbidity profile. Body Mass Index (BMI), an age-independent index was used to grade the nutritional status according to which, 36.7% of the boys were found to be malnourished. Signs of specific nutritional deficiencies were observed in 13.5% of the boys. Morbidity in some form or the other was present in 148 (60%) boys. Skin disease was the commonest morbidity (31.7%), followed by diseases of the oral cavity (16.1%), acute respiratory infections (8.6%) and diseases of the ear (9.9%). Need for health promotional activities is stressed to reduce the morbidity and improve the health status of these children.