| dc.description.abstract | People in developing countries have nutritional deficiencies for many reasons. These reasons may be and often are complex and difficult to label. Still, they can be put into perspective by studies that compare various factors of human growth. Growth statistics of children from three different communities in Mali, collected by Dr. Katherine Dettwyler in 1989 and by Dr. Barbara Cashion in 1976, were studied. The children's ages ranged between eight and sixteen. The data come from three types of locations: a rural village in southern Mali, a lower socio-economic status peri-urban community, and an upper socio-economic status urban community. Studies by Dettwyler in the peri-urban community, from 1981 to 1983, revealed delayed growth during the first three years of life. To determine if these growth deficits were permanent, data was collected from older children in 1989 in the peri-urban community. Growth data from these children were examined to see if their poor nutrition and growth recovered during late childhood and adolescence. These data were then compared to growth data collected by Cashion from the rural and upper socio-economic urban communities. Catch up growth occurred for the peri-urban and urban communities but it did not meet its full potential. The children from the rural community, however, showed very little recovery. | en |
