Tienboon Prasong, Wangpakapattanawong Prasit
Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai 50200, Thailand.
Asia Pac J Clin Nutr. 2007;16(2):279-85.
In Thailand, according to the national nutrition survey of the Thai population who live in the cities by the Ministry of Public Health, about 12% of preschool children aged 1-6 years were malnourished. The rate of malnutrition is much higher among mountain minority ('hill tribe') children than city children. This paper reports a study of malnutrition, body composition and health conditions of Karen hill tribe children aged 1-6 years in Thailand.
All children aged 1-6 years (N = 158; 83 boys, 75 girls) from the three Karen villages (Mae Hae Tai, Mae Yot, Mae Raek) of Mae Chaem district in the north of Thailand were studied. Anthropometric measurements of all children were obtained and body composition data were derived. All children were examined by a qualified medical doctor. A stool sample and blood smear for malaria from all children were examined by a well qualified medical technologist.
All families of the study boys and girls had incomes lower than the Thailand poverty line (US $ 1,000/year). There were no significant differences in weight, height or body mass index of boys and girls from each of the three villages. Malnutrition in children were found 85.5% by using weight-for-age, 73% by height-for-age (stunting) and 48.4% by weight-for-height (wasting). Boys had more total body fat mass than girls. However, all of them had low lean body mass and fat mass. Nearly all children (98%) suffered from either upper respiratory tract infection, skin infection, scabies and/or diarrhoea. Also, nearly all of them (97%) had scaly and dry skin over their chest walls and legs. About 10% of children had either angular stomatitis (5%) or bleeding per gums (3%) or bow legs (1%) or frontal bossing (1%) with their implications for micronutrient deficiency. None of the children from the three villages were infested with the malarial parasite. On average, 54% of children from Mae Hae Tai village and 85% of children from Mae Yot village but only 4% of the children from Mae Raek village were infested with parasites. Ascaris lumbricoides was the most common infestation in all children from three villages.
The prevalence of malnutrition was high among the Karen hill tribe children aged 1-6 years, Thailand. Most of the children suffered from upper respiratory tract infection, skin infection, scabiasis and/or diarrhrea. Nearly all of them had scaly and dry skin over their chest walls and legs which indicated essential fatty acid deficiencies. However, only 10% of them had vitamin deficiencies such as B2, C, and D.
在泰国，根据公共卫生部对城市泰国人口进行的全国营养调查，1至6岁的学龄前儿童中约有12%营养不良。山区少数民族（“山地部落”）儿童的营养不良率远高于城市儿童。本文报告了一项关于泰国1至6岁克伦山地部落儿童营养不良、身体成分和健康状况的研究。
对泰国北部湄占区三个克伦村庄（湄海泰、湄约、湄雷克）的所有1至6岁儿童（N = 158；83名男孩，75名女孩）进行了研究。获取了所有儿童的人体测量数据，并得出身体成分数据。所有儿童均由合格的医生进行检查。所有儿童的粪便样本和疟疾血涂片由合格的医学技术人员进行检查。
研究中男孩和女孩的所有家庭收入均低于泰国贫困线（每年1000美元）。三个村庄中男孩和女孩的体重、身高或体重指数均无显著差异。按年龄别体重计算，儿童营养不良率为85.5%，按年龄别身高计算（发育迟缓）为73%，按身高别体重计算（消瘦）为48.4%。男孩的总体脂肪量比女孩多。然而，他们所有人的瘦体重和脂肪量都很低。几乎所有儿童（98%）都患有上呼吸道感染、皮肤感染、疥疮和/或腹泻。此外，几乎所有儿童（97%）的胸壁和腿部皮肤都有鳞屑且干燥。约10%的儿童患有口角炎（5%）、牙龈出血（3%）、弓形腿（1%）或方颅（1%），这表明存在微量营养素缺乏。三个村庄的儿童均未感染疟原虫。平均而言，湄海泰村54%的儿童、湄约村85%的儿童感染了寄生虫，但湄雷克村只有4%的儿童感染了寄生虫。蛔虫是三个村庄所有儿童中最常见的寄生虫感染。
泰国1至6岁的克伦山地部落儿童中营养不良的患病率很高。大多数儿童患有上呼吸道感染、皮肤感染、疥疮和/或腹泻。几乎所有儿童的胸壁和腿部皮肤都有鳞屑且干燥，这表明存在必需脂肪酸缺乏。然而，只有10%的儿童存在维生素B2、C和D等缺乏症。
