Anthropometric Assessment of Nutritional Status of Primary School Girls (6-8 years) from Punjab

Abstract Anthropometry assessment of nutritional status of primary school girls (6-8 years) was conducted for the state of Punjab. For the above purpose, 352 girls were selected randomly from randomly selected villages located in four agroclimatic zones of Punjab. They were measured for height and weight to assess their growth profile and nutritional status. The family background information for each child was collected by interviewing their parents to assess their socio-economic status. The results revealed that as per Waterlow’s classification (Height for age), majority of respondents were nutritionally normal when compared with both NCHS (In ternational) and ICMR (Indian) standards and no significant inter-zonal differences were found. As per Gomez’s Classification (Weight for age), majority of girls were found to be moderately malnourished when compared with NCHS standards and with ICMR standards, again the sample was found to be nutritionally normal. Inter-zonal differences were found to be non significant for both standards. As per Waterlow’s classification (Weight for Height), majority of respondents were nutritionally normal when compared with both NCHS and ICMR standards and no significant inter-zonal differences were found.