Nutritional status of school-age children and adolescents in low- and middle-income countries across seven global regions: a synthesis of scoping reviews
Abstract Objective: To summarise available evidence on the nutritional status of school-age children and adolescents (5–19 years) from seven global regions and on interventions implemented to improve malnutrition in this population. Setting: Global. Design: Findings were compiled from seven sc...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Cambridge University Press
2023-01-01
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| Series: | Public Health Nutrition |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S1368980022000350/type/journal_article |
| _version_ | 1797741978299924480 |
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| author | Stephanie V Wrottesley Emily Mates Eilise Brennan Vasundhara Bijalwan Rachael Menezes Stephanie Ray Zakari Ali Amirhossein Yarparvar Deepika Sharma Natasha Lelijveld |
| author_facet | Stephanie V Wrottesley Emily Mates Eilise Brennan Vasundhara Bijalwan Rachael Menezes Stephanie Ray Zakari Ali Amirhossein Yarparvar Deepika Sharma Natasha Lelijveld |
| author_sort | Stephanie V Wrottesley |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description |
Abstract
Objective:
To summarise available evidence on the nutritional status of school-age children and adolescents (5–19 years) from seven global regions and on interventions implemented to improve malnutrition in this population.
Setting:
Global.
Design:
Findings were compiled from seven scoping literature reviews, including data from low- and middle-income countries within the following UNICEF-defined global regions: East Asia and Pacific; Europe and Central Asia; South Asia; West and Central Africa; Eastern and Southern Africa; Middle East and North Africa and Latin America and the Caribbean.
Results:
A double burden of malnutrition was evident across the world regions reviewed: stunting, thinness, anaemia and other micronutrient deficiencies persisted, alongside rising overweight and obesity prevalence. Transitions towards diets increasingly high in energy-dense, processed and micronutrient-poor foods were observed. Evidence from intervention studies was limited, but suggested that providing multiple micronutrient-fortified foods or beverages at school may effectively target micronutrient deficiencies and facilitate weight gain in undernourished populations. Interventions to prevent or manage overweight and obesity were even more limited. There was minimal evidence of using novel technological approaches to engage school-age children and adolescents, or of involving them in designing interventions.
Conclusion:
The limited data available on nutrition of school-age children and adolescents are neither standardised nor comparable. Consensus on methods for assessing nutritional status and its determinants for this age group is urgently needed to set targets and monitor progress. Additionally, strategies are required to ensure that nutritious, safe and sustainable diets are available, affordable and appealing.
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| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T14:35:23Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-95e82520e1f242c3b4639efc61778bd2 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1368-9800 1475-2727 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T14:35:23Z |
| publishDate | 2023-01-01 |
| publisher | Cambridge University Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Public Health Nutrition |
| spelling | doaj.art-95e82520e1f242c3b4639efc61778bd22023-08-17T10:00:44ZengCambridge University PressPublic Health Nutrition1368-98001475-27272023-01-0126639510.1017/S1368980022000350Nutritional status of school-age children and adolescents in low- and middle-income countries across seven global regions: a synthesis of scoping reviewsStephanie V Wrottesley0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5419-2920Emily Mates1Eilise Brennan2Vasundhara Bijalwan3Rachael Menezes4Stephanie Ray5Zakari Ali6https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8129-2230Amirhossein Yarparvar7Deepika Sharma8Natasha Lelijveld9Emergency Nutrition Network (ENN), 2nd Floor, 69 High St, Marlborough House, Kidlington, Oxfordshire OX5 2DN, UKEmergency Nutrition Network (ENN), 2nd Floor, 69 High St, Marlborough House, Kidlington, Oxfordshire OX5 2DN, UKEmergency Nutrition Network (ENN), 2nd Floor, 69 High St, Marlborough House, Kidlington, Oxfordshire OX5 2DN, UKDepartment of Population Health, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UKEmergency Nutrition Network (ENN), 2nd Floor, 69 High St, Marlborough House, Kidlington, Oxfordshire OX5 2DN, UK Department of Population Health, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UKDepartment of Population Health, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UKEmergency Nutrition Network (ENN), 2nd Floor, 69 High St, Marlborough House, Kidlington, Oxfordshire OX5 2DN, UK Nutrition Theme, MRC Unit The Gambia, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, Banjul, The GambiaUNICEF Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia, Almaty, KazakhstanUNICEF Headquarters, New York, NY, USAEmergency Nutrition Network (ENN), 2nd Floor, 69 High St, Marlborough House, Kidlington, Oxfordshire OX5 2DN, UK Abstract Objective: To summarise available evidence on the nutritional status of school-age children and adolescents (5–19 years) from seven global regions and on interventions implemented to improve malnutrition in this population. Setting: Global. Design: Findings were compiled from seven scoping literature reviews, including data from low- and middle-income countries within the following UNICEF-defined global regions: East Asia and Pacific; Europe and Central Asia; South Asia; West and Central Africa; Eastern and Southern Africa; Middle East and North Africa and Latin America and the Caribbean. Results: A double burden of malnutrition was evident across the world regions reviewed: stunting, thinness, anaemia and other micronutrient deficiencies persisted, alongside rising overweight and obesity prevalence. Transitions towards diets increasingly high in energy-dense, processed and micronutrient-poor foods were observed. Evidence from intervention studies was limited, but suggested that providing multiple micronutrient-fortified foods or beverages at school may effectively target micronutrient deficiencies and facilitate weight gain in undernourished populations. Interventions to prevent or manage overweight and obesity were even more limited. There was minimal evidence of using novel technological approaches to engage school-age children and adolescents, or of involving them in designing interventions. Conclusion: The limited data available on nutrition of school-age children and adolescents are neither standardised nor comparable. Consensus on methods for assessing nutritional status and its determinants for this age group is urgently needed to set targets and monitor progress. Additionally, strategies are required to ensure that nutritious, safe and sustainable diets are available, affordable and appealing. https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S1368980022000350/type/journal_articleNutritionSchool-age childrenAdolescentsLow- and middle-income countriesInterventions |
| spellingShingle | Stephanie V Wrottesley Emily Mates Eilise Brennan Vasundhara Bijalwan Rachael Menezes Stephanie Ray Zakari Ali Amirhossein Yarparvar Deepika Sharma Natasha Lelijveld Nutritional status of school-age children and adolescents in low- and middle-income countries across seven global regions: a synthesis of scoping reviews Public Health Nutrition Nutrition School-age children Adolescents Low- and middle-income countries Interventions |
| title | Nutritional status of school-age children and adolescents in low- and middle-income countries across seven global regions: a synthesis of scoping reviews |
| title_full | Nutritional status of school-age children and adolescents in low- and middle-income countries across seven global regions: a synthesis of scoping reviews |
| title_fullStr | Nutritional status of school-age children and adolescents in low- and middle-income countries across seven global regions: a synthesis of scoping reviews |
| title_full_unstemmed | Nutritional status of school-age children and adolescents in low- and middle-income countries across seven global regions: a synthesis of scoping reviews |
| title_short | Nutritional status of school-age children and adolescents in low- and middle-income countries across seven global regions: a synthesis of scoping reviews |
| title_sort | nutritional status of school age children and adolescents in low and middle income countries across seven global regions a synthesis of scoping reviews |
| topic | Nutrition School-age children Adolescents Low- and middle-income countries Interventions |
| url | https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S1368980022000350/type/journal_article |
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