Extracting Data on Children’s Growth Trajectories from Growth Charts in Low-Resource Settings: A Demonstration from the Manhiça District, Mozambique

Solveig A Cunningham, Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute and Emory University
Moses Ekwueme, Emory University
Jonathan Muir, The Ohio State University
Inacio Mandomando, Centro de Investigação em Saúde de Manhiça (CISM)
Georges Reniers, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM)
Cynthia Whitney, Emory University
Ariel Nhacolo, Manhica Health Research Center (CISM)
Quique Bassat, ISGlobal, Hospital Clínic, Universitat de Barcelona

Study-related migration is a major component of international migration. To capture the early stages of adaptation and integration into new environments, we sampled newly arrived international students (n=120) at two large universities in the Southeast United States within one month of their arrival; we used both quantitative and qualitative survey methods and anthropometric measurements to learn about their health and health-related behaviors. Students had healthy weight on average: 66% had normal weight; still, 8% were underweight, 21% were overweight, 5% had obesity and 24% had high waist circumference. Students from South Asia most frequently had unhealthy weight. Pre-migration diets were quite diverse, with high intake of vegetables, but also high intake of meats and sweets. Intake of junk foods such as snacks and sodas was infrequent before arrival in the U.S., but students reported being introduced to sodas and snacks after arriving in the U.S.