Socio‐economic factors associated with child growth in two seasons in an Urban Gambian Community

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Abstract
The relationships between nutritional status and 24 social and economic factors were investigated during the dry season and at the end of the rainy season in about 300 children aged 6 to 35 months living in the urban community of Bakau in The Gambia. Height‐for‐age was associated with the style of house and various other factors related to living conditions, the presence of the father in the compound and the parity of the mother. The associations were similar in both seasons. Weight‐for‐age showed similar, though weaker, associations in the rainy season, but there was little relationship between the socio‐economic factors and weight‐for‐age during the dry season. Few children had low weight‐for‐height in this community, and there was little relationship between weight‐for‐height and socio‐economic factors. This study emphasises the need to consider the effect of seasonal variations when assessing the relationship between nutritional status and socio‐economic factors.

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