Environmental stimulation on height: The story from Indonesia

Hasibuan, Susi Natalia; Pulungan, Aman B; Scheffler, Christiane; Groth, Detlef; Hermanussen, Michael

doi:10.1127/anthranz/2020/1209

Cited by 4 publications

(3 citation statements)

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“…Adolescents anticipate their future position and adjust growth accordingly as we observed in the female and particularly in the male Vietnamese migrants. Boys are more sensitive to environmental stressors and stimuli than girls (Hasibuan et al 2020). This is in line with the greater trend in male height with 7.44 cm compared with that of the females (3.85 cm) observed in this study.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Vietnamese migrants are as tall as they want to be

Hermanussen

Nguyen

Hermanussen³

2021

HBPH

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Background Members of the same social group tent to have the same body height. Migrants tend to adjust in height to their host communities. Objectives Social-Economic-Political-Emotional (SEPE) factors influence growth. We hypothesized that Vietnamese young adult migrants in Germany (1) are taller than their parents, (2) are as tall as their German peers, and (3) are as tall as predicted by height expectation at age 13 years. Sample and Methods The study was conducted in 30 male and 54 female Vietnamese migrants (mean age 26.23 years. SD=4.96) in Germany in 2020. Information on age, sex, body height, school and education, job, height and ethnicity of best friend, migration history and cultural identification, parental height and education, and recalled information on their personal height expectations at age 13 years were obtained by questionnaire. The data were analyzed by St. Nicolas House Analysis (SNHA) and multiple regression. Results Vietnamese young adults are taller than their parents (females 3.85cm, males 7.44cm), but do not fully attain height of their German peers. The body height is positively associated with the height of best friend (p < 0.001), the height expectation at age 13 year (p < 0.001), and father height (p=0.001). Conclusion Body height of Vietnamese migrants in Germany reflects competitive growth and strategic growth adjustments. The magnitude of this intergenerational trend supports the concept that human growth depends on Social-Economic-Political-Emotional (SEPE) factors.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Vietnamese migrants are as tall as they want to be

Hermanussen

Nguyen

Hermanussen³

2021

HBPH

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“…Stunting prevalence in the children of impoverished suburban dwellers, and political and economic migrants with no relevant association to the inner urban social strata of Kupang was 46.8% in the boys, and 25.5% in the girls. The sex difference reflects the higher susceptibility of boys to disadvantageous living conditions [38]. Children from affluent background were not only tallest, but had also highest BMI, and strongest MUAC, confirming general knowledge since more than a century [4].…”

Section: Summary Of Main Resultssupporting

confidence: 57%

Stunting as a Synonym of Social Disadvantage and Poor Parental Education

Hermanussen

Soegianto

Homalessy

et al. 2021

IJERPH

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Socially, economically, politically and emotionally (SEPE) disadvantaged children are shorter than children from affluent background. In view of previous work on the lack of association between nutrition and child growth, we performed a study in urban schoolchildren. We measured 723 children (5.83 to 13.83 years); Kupang, Indonesia; three schools with different social background. We investigated anthropometric data, clinical signs of malnutrition, physical fitness, parental education, and household equipment. Subjective self-confidence was assessed by the MacArthur test. The prevalence of stunting was between 8.5% and 46.8%. Clinical signs of under- or malnutrition were absent even in the most underprivileged children. There was no delay in tooth eruption. Underprivileged children are physically fitter than the wealthy. The correlation between height and state of nutrition (BMI_SDS, skinfold_SDS, MUAC_SDS) ranged between r = 0.69 (p < 0.01) and r = 0.43 (p < 0.01) in private school children, and between r = 0.07 (ns) and r = 0.32 (p < 0.01) in the underprivileged children. Maternal education interacted with height in affluent (r = 0.20, p < 0.01) and in underprivileged children (r = 0.20, p < 0.01). The shortness of SEPE disadvantaged children was not associated with anthropometric and clinical signs of malnutrition, nor with delay in physical development. Stunting is a complex phenomenon and may be considered a synonym of social disadvantage and poor parental education.

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“…However, Indonesians are still shorter than Europeans in general ( 7 , 21 ). We previously published our analysis of socioeconomic parameters and their relationship to body height; we found that higher economic status and increased population density lead to a greater increase in adult height in boys than in girls ( 22 ). We compared the height and BMI of primary school-aged children in Nabire, Papua, and Jakarta.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

International standard growth charts overestimate stunting prevalence in Nabire and Jakarta, Indonesia, compared to the Indonesian national growth chart

Hasibuan

Djer

Andarie

et al. 2023

Clin Pediatr Endocrinol

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. Children’s height in Indonesia is increasing slowly and unevenly across the country, with urban areas growing faster than rural areas. Thus, international growth charts may be ineffective for monitoring the development of Indonesian children. We conducted an analytical cross-sectional study on 1,829 children aged 6 to 12 in Nabire and 1,283 children in Jakarta. Anthropometric measurements were obtained and plotted on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) growth charts and Indonesian National Growth Charts to determine which chart is more suitable for monitoring children’s growth in Indonesia. Nabire children were shorter and had lower body mass index (BMI) than Jakarta children, with a mean height difference of 7.03 cm in boys and 6.89 cm in girls (p = 0.001) and a mean BMI difference of 1.66 in boys and 1.39 in girls (p = 0.001). Despite their short stature, more Nabire children had a normal BMI, indicating a healthy nutritional status. Using the Indonesian National Growth Charts, fewer children were classified as stunted or wasted. Most of the short stature observed in Nabire children was not due to stunting; the children showed no signs of malnutrition. The Indonesian National Growth Charts represent the growth of Indonesian children more accurately than the CDC growth charts.

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Environmental stimulation on height: The story from Indonesia

Cited by 4 publications

References 0 publications

Vietnamese migrants are as tall as they want to be

Vietnamese migrants are as tall as they want to be

Stunting as a Synonym of Social Disadvantage and Poor Parental Education

International standard growth charts overestimate stunting prevalence in Nabire and Jakarta, Indonesia, compared to the Indonesian national growth chart

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