Social class difference in catch up growth in a national British cohort

Abstract

Aim-To examine the influence of socioeconomic status on growth pattern in height from age 7 to 23 years. Methods-Prospective cohort study. A total of 10 200 white singleton born children from the 1958 British birth cohort (National Child Development Study) were analysed. Results-DiVerences in height by birth weight persisted throughout the follow up period. However, the mean diVerences in height between low birth weight infants (<2500 g) and adequate birth weight infants (>2500 g) were less notable in social classes I and II than in the lower social classes. The catching up of growth in height of low birth weight infants was also more pronounced in social classes I and II than in other social classes. That is, the mean height deficits of low birth weight infants were decreased from 2.9 cm at age 7, to 1.6 cm at age 16, and 2.5 cm at age 23; the significant diVerence disappeared after age 16 in social classes I and II. Although such improving tendency was more pronounced among the preterm born infants, a similar growth pattern was observed among the term infants. Such improvement was not observed in the other social classes. Conclusion-The growth retardation in height by birth weight can be overcome by improved social conditions and proper health care from childhood to adulthood. (Arch Dis Child 2001;84:218-221)

Social class gradients in health during adolescence

“…Indeed, early life disadvantage such as low birth weight is more effectively overcome by those in each successively higher social strata. 21 Conspicuously missing from all studies is consideration of the social context. The findings reported in this paper concerning gradients in characteristics related to subsequent health underscore the need for consideration of context, including not only social context but also material context, including access to food markets with affordable nutritious foods and access to safe facilities for physical exercise.…”

“…20 Interestingly, the height deficit of low birthweight infants was smaller in the higher social class groups when children were assessed at 7, 11, 16, and 23 years of age. 21 By the age of 16, the deficits of higher social class adolescents were no longer significantly different from that of their normal birthweight peers.…”

Coexistence of social inequalities in undernutrition and obesity in preschool children: population based cross sectional study

“…Social conditions during childhood may be an important determinant of achieving catch up growth and the persistence of undernutrition into later years. 25 Thus, while social class gradients in intrauterine growth are well known, 21 26 whether social deprivation has a more persistent effect on nutritional status during childhood is unclear. Evidence on social inequalities in childhood under and overnutrition is therefore lacking.…”

Variation in Height and Knee Height in Adolescents in Merida, Mexico, by Head of Household Employment Level and Family Income

“…Studies using parents' occupation and education level as criteria have identified that children of professionals or salaried employees with a high education level are taller than those whose parents are unqualified workers. This is associated with lower education level and has been documented in Sweden (Nystrôm-Peck & Vagero, 1987;Heineck, 2006), Germany (Kromeyer et al, 1997;Heineck, 2006) and England (Teranishi et al, 2001). In a recent study in Mexico, significant height differences were documented between the children of women with basic (elementary and junior high school) and university education levels (Moguel Canul, 2011).…”

“…Among the criteria commonly used to classify individuals into social classes are parents' occupation, employment and education levels (Nystrôm-Peck & Vagero, 1987;Kromeyer et al, 1997;Teranishi et al, 2001;Heineck, 2006), family or head of household income (Silventoinen et al, 1999) and place of residence (rural or urban zone) (Silventoinen et al, 1999;Komlos & Kriwy, 2003). Studies using parents' occupation and education level as criteria have identified that children of professionals or salaried employees with a high education level are taller than those whose parents are unqualified workers.…”