THE ZINC NUTRITURE OF PRESCHOOL-CHILDREN LIVING IN 2 AFRICAN COUNTRIES

The zinc nutrition of rural Malawian children (24 females, 33 males; a ge 62 +/- 10 mo) consuming cereal-based diets was compared with that o f rural Ghanaian children (43 females, 33 males; age 59 +/- 10 mo) con suming cereals or starchy staples, using hair zinc concentrations, gro wth and body composition indices, and dietary intakes. Intakes of ener gy, protein, Ca, Zn, dietary fiber and phytate at two seasons of the y ear were estimated from 3-d weighed food records, using analyzed and l iterature food composition values. The mean annual intakes of energy ( 5419 +/- 1081 vs. 4698 +/- 885 kJ), protein (31.8 +/- 7.0 vs. 24.1 +/- 6.8 g), Zn (7.4 +/- 1.9 vs. 5.1 +/- 1.1 mg) and phytate (1899 +/- 590 vs. 604 +/- 151 mg), and the mean molar ratios of [phytate]/[Zn] and [Cal x [phytate]/[Zn] mmol per MJ (25 +/- 4 vs. 12 +/- 2 and 44 +/- 13 vs 20 +/- 8 mmol/MJ), were higher for Malawian than for Ghanaian chil dren. More Malawian than Ghanaian children had [phytate]/[Zn] greater- than-or-equal-to 15 (72% vs. 0%) and were severely stunted (57 vs. 28% ). Ninety-four percent of children in Malawi and 83% in the Ghanaian v illage of Slepor had low hair Zn concentrations (< 1.68 mumol/g) compa red with 39% in Gidantuba, Ghana. In Gidantuba, children with low hair Zn concentrations had low upper-arm-muscle-area-for-age and upper-arm -muscle-area-for-height Z-scores. The high intakes of phytic acid rela tive to zinc in Malawi suggest that these children were at greater ris k for inadequate zinc nutriture than their Ghanaian counterparts.