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Pregnancy and lactation hinder growth and nutritional status of adolescent girls in rural Bangladesh
Author(s) -
Rah Jee Hyun,
Shamim Abu Ahmed,
Arju Ummeh Taslima,
Labrique Alain B,
Rashid Mahbubur,
West Keith P,
Christian Parul
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.21.5.a98
Subject(s) - medicine , anthropometry , pregnancy , menarche , lactation , obstetrics , short stature , demography , pediatrics , gynecology , endocrinology , genetics , sociology , biology
Adolescent pregnancies are a concern worldwide. We assessed annual changes in linear and ponderal size and body composition among pregnant and never‐pregnant 12–19 yr olds in rural Bangladesh. Primigravidae (n=218) were measured for anthropometry in the early 1 st and 3 rd trimesters of pregnancy and at 6‐mo postpartum (PP). Randomly selected never‐pregnant controls (n=436), matched on age and time since menarche, were measured within a week of these assessments. Present analyses include adolescents who had live births and their counterparts. The mean (SD) age and age at menarche were 16.3y (1.6) and 12.7y (1.7), respectively. Except for TSF, baseline measurements did not differ between the 2 groups. Unlike pregnant girls who did not grow in height, non‐pregnant controls increased in stature (0.02±0.7 vs. 0.3±0.8 cm/y, p<0.001). Whereas controls gained weight, BMI, and MUAC, pregnant girls declined in each measurement by 6‐mo PP (0.8±2.3 vs. −0.9±2.5 kg/y; 0.3±1.0 vs. −0.4±1.1 kg/m 2 /y; 0.2±0.9 vs. −0.5±1.1 cm/y, all p<0.001). Annual losses in TSF and % body fat were greater and gain in SSF less among pregnant vs. non‐pregnant girls (−1.4±2.2 vs. −0.2±2.2 mm/y; −0.69±0.12 vs. 0.04±0.11 %/y; 0.1±0.2 vs. 0.5±1.8 mm/y, all p<0.01). All differences remained significant after adjusting for confounding factors. Adolescent pregnancy slows post‐menarcheal growth that may result in 0.6–2.7cm deficits in attained height in rural Bangladeshi women. Funders: USAID & Gates Foundation