Age-specific responsiveness of weight and length to nutritional supplementation

• Published in: The American journal of clinical nutrition Vol. 51; no. 3; pp. 359 - 364
• Main Authors: Lutter, CK, Mora, JO, Habicht, JP, Rasmussen, KM, Robson, DS, Herrera, MG
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Bethesda, MD Elsevier Inc 01.03.1990; American Society for Clinical Nutrition
• Subjects: AGE; Age Factors; ALIMENTACION COMPLEMENTARIA; Analysis of Variance; Biological and medical sciences; Body Height; Body Weight; Breast Feeding; Child Nutrition Disorders; Child Nutrition Disorders - prevention & control; Child Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; Child, Preschool; children; CRECIMIENTO; CROISSANCE; Delivery. Postpartum. Lactation; DESTETE; DIARREA; diarrhea; Diarrhea, Infantile; Diarrhea, Infantile - prevention & control; DIARRHEE; dietary supplements; EDAD; ENFANT; Female; Food, Fortified; Gynecology. Andrology. Obstetrics; Humans; Infant; Infant, Newborn; INFANTES; infants; LARGURA; length; LONGUEUR; Male; Maternal, fetal and perinatal monitoring; Medical sciences; NINOS; NOUVEAU-NE; NUTRICION; NUTRITION; nutritional intervention; PESO; POIDS; prevention & control; SEVRAGE; SUPPLEMENTATION; weaning; weight; Human; Infant; Diet; Somatic growth; Weaning
• ISSN: 0002-9165; 1938-3207
• DOI: 10.1093/ajcn/51.3.359

Evaluation of the responsiveness of weight and length to supplementary feeding shows that the two periods of greatest response coincide with weaning (ages 3-6 mo) and peak incidence and duration of diarrheal disease (ages 9-12 mo). Analyses were done for seven consecutive nonoverlapping intervals comparing children randomly assigned to receive supplemental feeding from birth to age 36 mo or to serve as control subjects. Absolute responsiveness was greatest between ages 3-6 mo; supplemented infants grew 0.61 cm more and gained 162 g more than did unsupplemented infants (p less than 0.005). Relative to rates of growth, responsiveness was greatest between ages 9 and 12 mo (the period of peak diarrheal prevalence), followed by ages 3-6 mo (the period of weaning). Responsiveness to supplementation is thus directly related to age-dependent risk patterns for malnutrition. Targeting supplementation programs to coincide with periods of high nutritional risk should maximize their effectiveness in reducing malnutrition, though caution should be exercised to avoid disruption of breast-feeding.