2.1: Anthropometric Indicators Measurement Guide - Linkages Project

REFERENCES PART 9.
Adolescent
Anthropometric
Indicators
5.
APPENDIX
Adolescents are defined by WHO as those
in the age range of 10 to 19 years. The
nutritional status of this age group is
difficult to assess because there is not a
reference standard for adolescents and
there is a growth spurt which occurs with
puberty which occurs at different ages.
This limits the ability to use a reference
standard even if it is developed locally.
The ACC/SCN has produced a paper on
assessing nutrition status for emergencyaffected
populations (Woodruff, and
Duffield. Adolescents: Assessment of
Nutritional Status in Emergency-Affected
populations. SCN Geneva, July, 2000).
acc.unsystem.org/scn
The ACC/SCN recommends that due to
a lack of validated anthropometric
procedures for adolescents, anthropometry
is not used without examining
other population sub-groups and other
determinants of nutrition and food
security.
As with children, adolescent
anthropometric assessment is used to
reflect undernutrition. Anthropometry is
also used to reflect over nutrition but this
is not the focus of this guide. Undernutrition
in adolescents is characterized
by patterns of acute and chronic
deficiency of energy, protein and
micronutrients including vitamins and
minerals. Often a person is affected by
both acute and chronic deficiency in all or
some of the key nutrients. The
manifestation of the deficiency and the
measurement is, complicated to determine
and the functional significance
unclear. Undernutrition is characterized
by a lack of food and while specific
nutrient deficiencies occur, such as
pellagra due to a lack of niacin, the
primary cause is more general. We are
learning more about specific nutrient
requirements for diseases such as
HIV/AIDS but the ability of anthropometrics
to identify these conditions is
limited.
As with adults, adolescent anthropometric
assessment is used for several purposes
including:
• screening or targeting individuals for
some sort of intervention or action such as
supplementary feeding during famine
relief,
• surveillance or monitoring of changes
in prevalence and coverage in groups or
populations to trigger a response including
graduating from an intervention , and
• evaluating the impact of activities or
interventions.
Anthropometry is used to describe the
nutritional situation in a population and
this can be useful for problem analysis
and for evaluation. Because the
determinants of nutrition are so many, it is
important to examine other factors than
just anthropometry such as the food
security situation, levels of illness, care
giving practices and so on.
9.
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