Nutritional status following malaria control in a Vietnamese ethnic minority commune

Abstract

Objective: To study whether control of malaria leads to catch-up growth or an increase of obesity in a marginally nourished population. Setting: A Vietnamese ethnic minority commune in southern Vietnam. Design: Repeated annual anthropometric surveys were performed from 1995 to 2000. Z-scores for height, weight and BMI for age and weight-for-height were determined by using NCHS 1978 and CDC 2000 reference tables and by the LMS method. Intervention: Active malaria control that reduced the parasite carrier rate from 50% in 1994 to practically nil in 1998. Results: Inhabitants were generally of short stature and very thin. Using the US reference tables, the prevalence of moderate/ severe stunting among children was 53/24% and of wasting 27/9% in the first survey in 1995. Physical condition and normal daily activities of most inhabitants were normal. The repeated LMS-Z-scores uncovered a significant recovery of stunting, extending into preadolescence, including the development of a pubertal growth spurt for girls and enhancement of pubertal growth in boys, after control of malaria. The mean (95% CI) annual increase of Z-height-for-age was 0.11 (0.09-0.12) for boys and 0.14 (0.13-0.15) for girls (Po0.001). As a consequence, weight-for-age and BMI Z-scores decreased without indication of developing obesity. Conclusion: Catch-up growth, extending into preadolescent age, was observed in a Vietnamese ethnic minority population with a chronic state of low food intake, without indication of developing obesity. The control of malaria was probably the most significant contribution to this catch-up growth.

The Association between Nutritional Status and Malaria in Children from a Rural Community in the Amazonian Region: A Longitudinal Study

“…vivax malaria experienced delayed linear and weight growth [ 20 ]. Available reports indicating that malaria infection can trigger acute undernutrition [ 36 , 37 ] and the effect of reducing malaria transmission on the improvement of undernutrition among children [ 38 – 40 ] are in agreement with our findings. We did not find an association for many of the investigated relationships, in particular for children below the age of 5.…”

Impact of modernization on adult body composition on five islands of varying economic development in vanuatu

“…Malaria in particular has been well studied as a contributor to child and adult nutritional status, and is endemic on Ambae, but not on Futuna. Multiple studies have demonstrated that malaria is related to deficits in nutritional status in children and adults (Friedman et al 2003;Nyakeriga et al, 2004;Pereira et al, 1995), and that treatment of malaria can lead to improved growth and weight gain in children (Hung et al, 2005). We also observed that stature in adult males was significantly greater on Futuna than on Ambae; adult stature is a reflection of conditions experienced during growth and development, including infection (Cole, 2003).…”

The New “Obstetrical Dilemma”: Stunting, Obesity and the Risk of Obstructed Labour

“…Some of the clearest evidence for the impact of diseases comes from efforts to reduce their health burden. For example, treatment for the common gastrointestinal infection Helicobacter pylori in Colombian children improved growth (Mera et al, ), while malaria treatment in Vietnam reduced the prevalence of stunting (Hung et al, ). In India, the Universal Immunization Program was associated with greater weight and height in childhood (Anekwe and Kumar, ).…”