Nutritional situation of children under five years old in Brazil’s northeastern cities

OBJECTIVE: To describe the nutritional situation of children under five years old resident in three cities of Brazil’s northeastern region. METHODS: A transversal epidemiological study was undertaken with the participation of 1,378 children. The anthropometric measurements height/age, weight/age and weight/height were calculated in terms of the Z score. Children’s growth curves of the World Health Organization were used as reference. RESULTS: Higher proportions were found of overweight/ height (8.3% in Barra de Sao Miguel, 10.3% in Cabedelo and 5.9% in Tibau do Sul) than of deficit (1.5% in Barra de Sao Miguel, 1.9% in Cabedelo and 0.9% in Tibau do Sul). A higher prevalence of the height deficit was observed (5.9% in Barra de Sao Miguel, 5.5% in Cabedelo and 4.6% in Tibau do Sul) than of the weight deficit (3.6% in Barra de Sao Miguel, 2.5 % in Cabedelo and 1.5% in Tibau do Sul). CONCLUSION: The nutritional status of the group studied was unfavorable. Actions to promote adequate eating habits within the context of food and nutrition programs and policies should, therefore, be prioritized. The high prevalence of height deficit and overweight highlights the vulnerability of this group and the sum of the necessary actions should produce an impact by reversing this nutritional profile.