NUTRITIONAL STATUS, SOCIO-ECONOMIC AND HYGIENIC CONDITION OF SCHOOL AGED CHILDREN OF A VILLAGE OF PUNE DISTRICT, MAHARASHTRA

Introduction: The field of anthropometry encompasses a variety of human body measurements, such as weight, height and size; including skin fold thickness, circumference, lengths, and breadths. Anthropometry is a key component of nutritional status assessment in children and adults. Anthropometric data for children reflect general health status, dietary adequacy and growth and development over time. The main objective of the study was to diagnose and analyze the magnitude and causes of nutritional and health problems of the village. Method: Anthropometric reference data of 100 children between 7-14 years of age from a small village situated 30 km from Pune. Using this data BMI i.e. Body Mass Index was calculated which helps in determining whether an individual is overweight or underweight. Result: The overall study helped us to find out the socioeconomic condition, hygienic condition as well as nutritional status of children. All the anthropometric measurements of the girls and boys in 7-14 years age group was found to be significantly normal. Conclusion: The hygienic condition of the village was good enough and in turn BMI data shows that the socioeconomic condition of the village was also good.