The objective of this paper is to document the extent and distribution of child and adult malnutrition in Guatemala; to analyze the relationship between selected child, maternal, household and community characteristics and children's nutritional status; and to outline the implications of the most important findings for nutritional policy. The prevalence of chronic malnutrition among Guatemalan children in 2000 was the highest in Latin America and among the highest in the world. The data show very strong socioeconomic and geographic inequality. The econometric analysis reveals a strong impact of income and of intergenerational effects. Education of adults in the household and the availability of infrastructure are other important determinants of children's growth attainment. Finally, even controlling for income and other household and community characteristics, ethnicity remains an important determinant of child nutritional status. The study also reveals an increasing prevalence of excess weights and obesity among children and adults. Overnutrition tends to be higher among individuals living in urban areas and among non-poor and non-indigenous households. This paper-a product of the Human Development Sector Unit, Latin America and the Caribbean Region-is part of a larger effort in the region to study poverty and human development processes.

This book presents the results of a comprehensive longitudinal and cross-sectional seven-year study of the social ecology of growth and development of over 500 children living in a disadvantaged community on the edge of Guatemala City.

This third edition reviews the epidemiology, policies, programs and outcome indicators that are used to determine improvements in nutrition and health that lead to development. This greatly expanded third edition provides policy makers, nutritionists, students, scientists, and professionals with the most recent and up-to-date knowledge regarding major health and nutritional problems in developing countries. Policies and programs that address the social and economic determinants of nutrition and health are now gaining in importance as methods to improve the status of the most vulnerable people in the world. This volume provides the most current research and strategies so that policy makers, program managers, researchers and students have knowledge and resources that they can use to advance methods for improving the public’s health and the development of nations. The third edition of Nutrition and Health in Developing Countries takes on a new context where the word “developing” is now a verb and not an adjective.

List of tables; Education of caregiver; Knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs of caregiver; Physical health and nutritional status of caregiver; Mental health, self-confidence, and lack of stress of caregiver; Autonomy and control of resources in the household by caregiver; Workload and time availability of caregiver; Social support for caregiver; Estimates of time spent on child care from observation and recall; Feeding practices: caregiver-child interactions; Feeding practices: child variables; Psychosocial care: child and caregiver interactions; Psychosocial care: child variables; Illustrations; The unicef conceptual model; The extended model of care; The transactional model of care; Pathways of interaction of education with caregiving; Possible pathways of interaction of maternal health and caregiving; Summary; Introduction; Developments in conceptualizing care; Resources for care; Care practices.

More children born today will survive to adulthood than at any time in history. It is now time to emphasize health and development in middle childhood and adolescence--developmental phases that are critical to health in adulthood and the next generation. Child and Adolescent Health and Development explores the benefits that accrue from sustained and targeted interventions across the first two decades of life. The volume outlines the investment case for effective, costed, and scalable interventions for low-resource settings, emphasizing the cross-sectoral role of education. This evidence base can guide policy makers in prioritizing actions to promote survival, health, cognition, and physical growth throughout childhood and adolescence.

As women's labor force participation has risen around the globe, scholarly and policy discourse on the ramifications of this employment growth has intensified. This book explores the links between maternal employment and child health using an international perspective that is grounded in economic theory and rigorous empirical methods. Women's labor-market activity affects child health largely because their paid work raises household income, which strengthens families' abilities to finance healthcare needs and nutritious food; however, time away from children could counteract some of the benefits of higher socioeconomic status that spring from maternal employment. New evidence based on data from nine South and Southeast Asian countries illuminates the potential tradeoff between the benefits and challenges families contend with in the face of women's labor-market activity. This book provides new, original evidence on links between maternal employment and children's health using data associated with three indicators of children's nutritional status: birth size, stunting, and wasting. Results support the implementation and enforcement of policy interventions that bolster women's advancement in the labor market and reduce undernutrition among children. Scholars, students, policymakers and all those with an interest in nutritional science, gender, economics of the family, or development economies will find the methodology and original results expounded here both useful and informative.