[The perception of body image as a qualitative approach to nutritional status]. / Percepción de la imagen corporal como aproximación cualitativa al estado de nutrición.

OBJECTIVE: To compare body image perception with body mass index (BMI) calculated from the weight and size declared by subjects, and to evaluate its usefulness in classifying the nutritional status. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A representative sample of the Spanish population was selected consisting of 517 males and 483 females older than 15 years of age. Variables were sex, age, educational level, BMI and perceived body image. Differences between groups were estimated with the chi 2 test. Specificity and sensitivity of the agreement between body mass and image were assessed. RESULTS: The nutritional status for both indicators revealed higher overweight prevalence in males and obesity in females, which increase with age and decrease with greater educational level. Perceived body image differed between sexes, and among ages and educational levels (p < 0.01). Sensitivity and specificity as well as positive and negative predictive values were higher than 0.90 in subjects belonging to extreme cases. Precision was higher for sensitivity than for specificity. In all groups, categorization was better in females than in males and so was Spearman's correlation (p < 0.001). The Kendall W coefficient ranked high for both groups. CONCLUSIONS: Body image allowed the identification of individuals with normal, excessive or lean nutrition. This indicator can therefore be useful in epidemiological surveys, considering some limitations for individualized diagnoses.

[Nutritional status of Guatemalan refugees below 6 years of age]. / Estado de nutrición de los refugiados guatemaltecos menores de seis años.

OBJECTIVE: To determine changes in the nutritional status of Guatemalan refugee children under six years of age, who lived in Mexico between 1982 and 1996, under various nutrition-related programs implemented during that period. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A comparative analysis of 4 cross-sectional anthropometric studies performed in Chiapas (1982, 1989), Quintana Roo (1989) and Campeche and Quintana Roo in 1996. Malnutrition prevalence by weight/age and height/age indicators was calculated. Odds ratio and 95% confidence intervals were estimated. The implemented programs to improve nutritional status and health conditions are described. RESULTS: In 1982, high rates of malnutrition and mortality prevailed among refugee children. In 1989 some had been transferred to Campeche and Quintana Roo and others stayed in Chiapas. Their situation had improved and remained so until 1996. CONCLUSIONS: The implemented programs were successful to control the emergency and prevent new crises. However they only managed to maintain similar conditions for the refugees as those which prevail among the Mexican indians.

[Child malnutrition in the Mexican rural environment: an analysis of national nutrition surveys]. / La desnutrición infantil en el medio rural mexicano: análisis de las encuestas nacionales de alimentación.

The national food surveys of 1974, 1979 and 1989 were analysed in order to evaluate the levels and tendencies of the malnutrition prevalence in children one to five years old. The malnutrition prevalence maintained its level with minor changes: it increased from 49 to 53 per cent in the group with -1 SD, and from 17 to 19 per cent in those with -2 SD, in relation with the WHO [correction of OMS]-NCHS standards. If the information is analysed by social sectors, it is possible to conclude that the apparent stability is due to a process of nutritional polarization: the areas that had lower figures improved as the poor and Indian areas with high prevalence of initial malnutrition deteriorated even more.

[The validation of qualitative nutritional indicators: the Guttman Scale vs the customary diet]. / Validación de indicadores cualitativos de alimentación: Escala de Guttman vs dieta habitual.

The purpose of this study was to assess the validity and feasibility of using the Guttman Scale as an indicator of usual dietary intake. Validation was done by comparing the results of dietary intake of a population obtained by using the Guttman Scale with a well-known method for evaluating dietary intake: the dietary history (one week). The study was done in seven communities in the state of Puebla, Mexico. Results from this study showed a weak correlation between the Guttman Scale with socioeconomic status and nutritional status. However, the results obtained with the dietary history method had a significant relationship with socioeconomic status and nutritional status. The conclusions are that the Guttman Scale has limitations when it is used as an alternative to the dietary history method for evaluating the total caloric intake, though it can be useful to determine dietary patterns of the individual.