The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of street life on the growth and health status of poor children who live and work full-time on the streets of Dhaka, Bangladesh (street children), independent of the effects of poverty. This was accomplished by comparing 142 street children with 150 poor children who live and work on the streets of Dhaka but who return to their families at night (slum children). Children between 7-14 years old were recruited at locales where street and slum children are typically found. Weight and upper arm circumference did not differ significantly between street and slum children (P > 0.05), but energy reserves, as assessed by skinfolds, were significantly larger in street than in slum children (P < 0.05). There was no wasting in either street or slum children. Although the majority of children in both groups were stunted and underweight, there were no significant differences between groups (P > 0.05). The prevalence of disease symptoms tended to be slightly higher in street children than in slum children, but few of the differences were statistically significant (P < 0.05). These data do not support the contention that street children are a particularly high-risk group. The greater-than-expected growth and health status of street children, compared to other poor children, may be due to biologically fitter children being more likely to permanently move to the streets and/or to remain on the streets once the move has been made.

No abstract

The negative impact of poverty on the biological well-being of children is well established. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the impact of the stress of full-time street life on the dietary patterns and dietary adequacy of street children living in Dhaka, Bangladesh. This was accomplished by comparing the nutritional patterns of full-time street children with those of other poor children in Dhaka who also spend their days on the streets but who return to their families at night. There were few differences between groups, possibly due to street children being a select group. However, there were significant sex differences in both groups of children, with boys tending to have more diverse and more adequate diets than girls. The cause of this latter pattern could not be determined with the available data but may involve cultural values favoring males over females.

The present report describes seasonal variability (postharvest, preharvest, harvest) in the dietary adequacy of highland Karen farmers (38 Pwo and 51 Sgaw mother-weaned child pairs) in Thailand. Both the Pwo and Sgaw exhibit little functionally significant seasonal variation in either energy or protein intakes, although there is significant seasonal variation in other nutrients. Sgaw Karen mothers and their weaned children had significantly higher intakes of energy, protein, and seven nutrients than their Pwo counterparts during all three study seasons. The cause of this difference appears to be related to the better socioeconomic status of the Sgaw, as well as to differences in belief systems that result in a greater utilization of wild resources by the Sgaw. There were no significant differences in energy intakes between mothers and their children in either ethnic group, while children tended to have significantly greater intakes of protein but significantly lower intakes of other nutrients. These differences in dietary patterns appear to be due to differences in dietary density and dietary preferences, rather than to foods being differentially directed towards adults.