Weight Gain Variation in Infants of an Impoverished Community: Bellanse, Haiti

Abstract

Maintaining adequate growth remains one of the most difficult tasks for infants in developing countries. A cohort of rural infants (n = 354), median age four months, were weighed every 6–7 weeks over an 18-month period. Some 179 infants (51%) with weight information over at least 12 months were included in the study. The association between weight gain up to 6 months of age, and between 6 and 23 months of age, and factors amenable to prevention were assessed using weighted multiple linear regression. Infants whose mothers understood the ‘Road to Health’ chart had a weight gain that was 123 g/month (95% confidence interval (CI): 2–245) higher up to six months of age and 31 g/ month (95% CI: 6–57) higher between 6 and 23 months of age compared to infants whose mothers did not seem to understand the chart. The weight gain between 6 and 23 months was also 28 g/month (95% CI: 3–54) higher for infants fully vaccinated at 11 months compared to not fully vaccinated children. It was 47 g/month (95% CI: 16–78) higher for infants living in two-parent families compared to children of a single-parent family. The results of the study suggest that maternal comprehension of the ‘Road to Health’ chart may contribute to more adequate weight gain.