Association between dietary quality and growth of the aboriginal primary school children in Negeri Sembilan

• Published in: British food journal (1966) Vol. 124; no. 5; pp. 1712 - 1726
• Main Authors: Kuralneethi, Silambarasi, Sharif Ishak, Sharifah Intan Zainun, Ulaganathan, Vaidehi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Bradford Emerald Publishing Limited 21.03.2022; Emerald Group Publishing Limited
• Subjects: Age; Body mass index; Body size; Body weight; Children; Children & youth; Consent; Data collection; Diet; Dietary intake; Eating behavior; Food; Food intake; Heat affected zone; Indigenous peoples; Malnutrition; Micronutrients; Native peoples; Native students; Nutrition; Nutrition research; Nutritionists; Overnutrition; Overweight; Population; Schools; Sociodemographics; Socioeconomics; Software; Standard scores; Teenagers; Underweight; Vitamin A; Terengganu Malaysia; Malaysia; Negeri Sembilan; Dietary quality; Growth status; Dietary intake; Aboriginal children; School-aged
• ISSN: 0007-070X; 1758-4108
• DOI: 10.1108/BFJ-04-2021-0350

PurposeThis study aims to determine the association between dietary quality and growth of the aboriginal primary school children in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia.Design/methodology/approachThe cross-sectional study was carried out in Negeri Sembilan. A total of 194 school-aged aboriginal children participated in the study. The dietary intake and socioeconomic status data were collected from the parents using an interviewer-administrated structured questionnaire comprised of sociodemographic questions and three days of dietary recall. The Malaysian Healthy Eating Index was used to determine the diet quality of children. WHO Anthro Plus software was used to determine the z-score of weight-for-age (WAZ), height-for-age (HAZ) and body mass index (BMI)-for-age (BAZ).FindingsAmong all children, 15, 9 and 5% of them were stunted, underweight and thin, respectively. On the other hand, 16 and 12% of the children were overweight and obese, respectively. The aboriginal children were at risk of poor diet quality (37.19 ± 12.07) and had high dietary protein and fat intake than national recommended nutrient intake. The children achieved micronutrients intake, except for calcium. There was no significant association between total diet quality scores with growth indices among the aboriginal children. There is significant negative correlation between dietary vitamin A intake with HAZ (r = −0.168, p < 0.05) and WAZ (r = −0.219, p < 0.05) z-score of the aboriginal children.Originality/valueAlthough there was a reduction in under-nutrition among the aborigines, an increasing over-nutrition status among aborigines should be considered, especially in terms of poor dietary quality and intake.