Anthropometric assessment of children in Mamre.

The nutritional status of the children attending the crèche and the primary school in Mamre was assessed using standards derived by the National Center for Health Statistics in the USA. The results for children aged under 11 years are presented. Of the 75 children at the crèche 9% were below the 3rd percentile of weight for age, 11% below the 3rd percentile of height for age and 1% below the 3rd percentile of weight for height. A significantly larger proportion of boys than of girls were under the 3rd percentile of height for age. Of the 430 primary school children aged under 11 years 10.2% were below the 3rd percentile of weight for age, 10.9% below the 3rd percentile of height for age and 4.4% below the 3rd percentile of weight for height. A significantly larger proportion of primary school boys aged 8-10 years than of girls were below the 3rd percentile of weight for height. Significantly more girls aged 5-7 years than girls aged 8-10 years were underweight for age.