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Aug 14, 2017Article Details
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Health status of hostel dwellers: Part III. Nutritional status of children 0 - 5 years
Abstract
The standards laid down by the National Center for Health Statistics in the USA were used to assess the nutritional status of children (0 - 5 years) in the Zones, an urban migrant council-built hostel complex in Langa, outside Cape Town. Of the children, 5,7% were below the 3rd percentile of weight-for-age (acute undernutrition). There was a significant difference between age categories and an increase in age was associated with an increase in proportion of children below the 3rd percentile. Acute undernutrition was significantly higher for children born outside Cape Town. There was a significant difference between age groups and percentage of children below the 3rd percentile of height-for-age (chronic undernutrition). Chronic nutritional levels were also significantly higher for children not born in Cape Town. Yet there were no significant differences between proportions of children under the 3rd percentile of height-for-weight (current nutritional status) for age category or place of birth. These results suggested that while in town children were adequately nourished, this was not the case at their home-base. Chronic undernutrition findings indicated an incremental negative effect of the poverty of the home-base on the long-term health status of hostel migrant children.
