Dietary aflatoxin exposure and impaired growth in young children from Benin and Togo: cross sectional study

Fetal and early childhood environment, including the nutritional status of the pregnant mother and the infant, are considered critical for growth and risk of disease in later life.1 Many people in developing countries are not only malnourished but also chronically exposed to high levels of toxic fungal metabolites (mycotoxins). One family of mycotoxins, the aflatoxins, are carcinogenic and immunotoxic and cause growth retardation in animals.2 Aflatoxins contaminate staple foods in West Africa, particularly maize and groundnuts, as a result of hot, humid storage conditions that promote fungal growth. High exposure to aflatoxins occurs throughout childhood in the region, 3 4 suggesting that growth and development could be critically affected. We assessed exposure to aflatoxins in relation to anthropometric measures in children in Benin and Togo. We studied 480 children (aged 9 months to 5 years) from 16 villages in four geographic zones (four in each zone): Sudan savannah, north Guinea savannah, south Guinea savannah, and coastal savannah. The Ministries for Health in Benin and Togo gave ethical …