R. Martorell et al., REVERSIBILITY OF STUNTING - EPIDEMIOLOGIC FINDINGS IN CHILDREN FROM DEVELOPING-COUNTRIES, European journal of clinical nutrition, 48, 1994, pp. 190000045-190000057
The growth literature from developing countries is reviewed to assess
the extent to which stunting, a phenomenon of early childhood, can be
reversed in later childhood and adolescence. The potential for catch-u
p growth increases as maturation is delayed and the growth period is p
rolonged. However, maturational delays in developing countries are usu
ally less than two years, only enough to compensate for a small fracti
on of the growth retardation of early childhood. Follow-up studies fin
d that subjects who remain in the setting in which they became stunted
experience little or no catch-up in growth later in life. Improvement
s in living conditions, as through food supplementation or through ado
ption, trigger catch-up growth but do so more effectively in the very
young. One study cautions that in older adopted subjects, accelerated
growth may accelerate maturation, shorten the growth period and lead t
o short adult stature.