Seasonal dietary stress in Peruvian children.
This article examines the seasonal variation in energy intake among young children in a fanning community in southern Peru. Caloric intakes among young children fall to their lowest annual level during the post-harvest season even though food and cash resources are at their highest levels. Among toddlers (1-3 years) the decline is statistically significant (p = 0.006). Their energy intake meets only 65.6 per cent of their predicted requirement during the post-harvest season. In contrast to the literature, dietary stress for young children is not greatest in the pre-harvest season. Also, household food availability does not accurately indicate dietary risk among young children in this community.
Graham
Margaret A
MA
Department of Anthropology and Sociology, Santa Clara University, CA 95053, USA. mgraham@scu.edu
D002675:Child, Preschool; D004034:Diet Surveys; D002149:Energy Intake; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D009751:Nutritional Requirements; D010568:Peru; D012424:Rural Population; D012621:Seasons