Nutritional Status of Indonesian Children in Low-Income Households with Fathers that Smoke

Wijaya-Erhardt, Maria

Abstract

OBJECTIVES
This study compared the nutritional status of children in low-income households in Indonesia whose fathers were either cigarette smokers or non-smokers.
METHODS
A cross sectional study of 482 children aged 2-6 years was conducted, stratified by whether the fathers were non-smoking (n = 138) or smoking (n = 340). Mothers and smoking fathers were interviewed about socioeconomic status and cigarette expenditure, respectively. The nutritional status of children was defined by weight-for-age, height-for-age and weight-for-height.
RESULTS
Both groups had similar income. Households with a father that smoked, spent 16.6% of their income on cigarettes. Children whose fathers did not smoke had higher height-for-age (âˆ’1.99 vs. âˆ’2.25 Z-score, p = 0.02) than children whose fathers smoked. Weight-for-age in children with fathers that did not smoke was greater (âˆ’1.49 vs. âˆ’1.64 Z-score) but not statistically significantly different to those children with fathers that smoked, nor was child weight-for-height (âˆ’0.46 vs. âˆ’0.45 Z-score). The prevalence of stunted growth was higher in the children with a father that smoked compared with those that had a father did not smoke (62.2 vs. 49.6%, p = 0.07, respectively). There were 28.3% of children underweight in homes where the fathers did not smoke, and 35.6% in households where the father smoked (p = 0.11). Wasting was observed in 4.4% children where fathers did not smoke and 4.7% where fathers did smoke.
CONCLUSION
With similar income constraints, the degree of height growth faltering was less in children whose fathers did not smoke, compared to those whose fathers did smoke.