- Email: [email protected]
Perspective in Human Growth, Development and Maturation
Economics and Human Biology 1 (2003) 403–411
Book reviews Perspective in Human Growth, Development and Maturation Parasmani Dasgupta, Ronald Houspie (Eds.), Kluwer Academic Publishers, The Netherlands, 2001, ISBN 1-4020-0000-6, pp. xvi + 364 The volume is a rich anthology of original papers encompassing the panorama of human auxology contributed by specialists from all over the world. There are 27 contributions in three broad categories: (a) Genetic and Environmental Factors, (b) Population Differences and Biological Aspects, and (c) Methodological Aspects of human growth. In a splendid foreword by J.M. Tanner, the world-renowned pioneer auxologist, refers to the importance of the monumental accomplishments of Professor Sudhir Ranjan Das, to whom the book is dedicated. The volume concludes with a brief sketch of the life and accomplishments of the late Das. The importance of his Sarsuna–Barisha Growth study deserves to be emphasized. The first chapter L.D. Voss recapitulates the history of the measurement of human growth, starting from the system of measuring the bodies of royal persons for burial purposes among the ancient Egyptians, up to the establishment of New Growth Clinics in London in recent years. Chapter 2 is dedicated to individual Physical Growth Models and Biological Parameters of the Japanese population. The authors (Shohoji and Sumiya) present a growth model with fewer free growth parameters, and introduce an extended Count-Gompertz growth model. In addition, they study the stable relationships among adult height and some biological parameters such as the age at menarche and age at peak height velocity. LMS-method involving Box and Cox Power (L), normalized mean (M) and co-efficient of variation (S) has been applied to smooth centile curves of height of Basque children in Chapter 3 by Rosque, San Martin, Fernandez-Lopez, Salces, Rebato, Vinagre and Susanne. The study was conducted in order to construct cross-sectional growth charts; the LMS method was chosen, because it affords suitable centile values of cross-sectional samples of moderate size. The application of the LMS to the un-standardized height yields good correspondence between the observed and expected values. The paper “New International Growth Reference for Young Children” by De Onis, Victoria, Garza, Frongillo and Cole, based on the recommendation of the World Health Organization (WHO) Expert Committee (1995) on “Physical Status: the use and interpretation of anthropometry”, is aimed at replacing the NCHS-WHO reference data with a new international growth reference. The recommended approach represents a significant departure from prior growth references. Application of the Fels method and Tanner–Whitehouse methods for the assessment of skeletal ages of school children is the subject of Chapter 5 by Pen Reyes and Malina. The skeletal maturity of the hand and wrist in a sample of school children in Oaxaca have been assessed using the two methods, and the skeletal ages compared. The two methods 1570-677X/$ – see front matter © 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
404
Book reviews
did not provide the same estimates of skeletal age, among children living under generally impoverished health and nutritional circumstances. Assessment of childhood and adolescents body composition is discussed in Chapter 6 by Pietrobelli, Heo and Faith. The methods for pediatric body composition assessment are described. The methods discussed are Dual Energy X-ray Absorptionmetry (DXA), CT and MRI Imaging, Body Mass Index (BMI), Skin fold assessment and Bio-impedance Analysis (BIA). The authors warn that all these methods have their limitations, and as a consequence, both clinicians and researchers should be cautious in using these methods by themselves. Chapter 7 is dedicated to the methodology of studying the Genetics Traits by Rao and Mazumdar. Along with methodological considerations such as Study design, Lumping and Splitting Strategy, attention is drawn to the Genetics of Fat Patterning. Evidence of linkage for Body Mass Index (BMI) from genome-wide scans in two family studies (Quebec Family Study, QFS, Chagnon et al., 2001a, and Heritage Family Study, Chagnon et al., 2001b) suggests that as many as six genomic regions may be involved, each with a LOD score ≥ 2.0, which clearly indicates that there are genomic regions involved in the inheritance of BMI. In Chapter 8, Rebato, Rosique, Pietrobelli, Chatterjee (M), Saha and Dasgupta dealt discuss subcutaneous adipose tissue distribution in relation to socio-economic level. They used Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to obtain the pattern of fat distribution. The investigation was done on Bengali Hindu boys of Kolkata, aged 7–16 years. Four skin folds and calf circumference of the subjects provided the material for the study. In the PCA, the components show relationship of shape, but no such relationship with body size. Socio-economic effects are also considered; the middle income group (SES2) has a fat distribution less centralized than either SES1 or SES3. Chapter 9, by Brown and Townsend on “Dentofacial morphology, growth and genetics: a study of Australian aborigines” is of immense significance from the point of view of clinical dentistry as well as human biological variation. The central theme of the research is ‘the importance of understanding that various component of human masticatory system [are] inter-related morphologically and functionally’. The aborigines studied, were traditionally nomadic and later adopted to European diet and life-style. “Riddles in human development patterns: a few family case studies” is discussed in Chapter 10. Singh studies the physical stature of individuals through generations in three families of Patman village in Uttar Pradesh, India. In general, the data do not reveal any clear mode of inheritance and the expression of stature attainment. In the study titled, “Nutrition in Venezuela at the end of the millennium” (Chapter 11), Lopez–Blanco explores the change in nutritional status of the Venezuelans, as a consequence of secular changes since the 1930s. The author concludes, “. . . Venezuela is in the midst of a demographic, epidemiological and nutritional transition. In fact, the traditional concepts of undernutrition in poverty and overnutrition in wealth is not real any more: in one family— even of the lowest social level—one can find an undernourished infant, an anaemic mother and an obese father with a high risk of NCCD (Non-Communicable Chronic Disease)”. Eveleth’s paper titled, “Thoughts on secular trends in growth and development” is presented in Chapter 12. The author observes that the rapidly changing political, economic or climatic situation in the world, such as the break-up in Yugoslavia, violence in Israel and Indonesia, hurricanes in Mexico, floods in Bangladesh, AIDS in Africa, East Asia, Europe and the Americas, newly emerging diseases, development of new drugs and access
Book reviews
405
to them, drought in Africa and Australia may all influence child growth. The importance of anthropometric measurements of well-defined samples at regular intervals in the evaluation of policies as well as in formulating future national policies is also emphasized. The paper on Secular trends and Long-term Serial Growth studies by Roche and Towne emphasizes the design of such studies. ‘The major purpose is to describe growth patterns, predict future growth, analyze the relative importance of determinants of growth and development, and evaluate the significance of changes during childhood and adulthood’. Chapter 14, ‘Secular trends indicate specific factors’ by Henneberg, discusses the muchdebated issue of the direct association between secular changes in height and socio-economic conditions. The author suggests that ‘Secular trends must be caused by specific factors varying from population to population rather than by the general improvement in living conditions’. The author has also points out that ‘typically more than 90% of variation in height is due to the variation of the underlying genetic material’. Visweswara Rao, Balakrishna and Veena’s study on a sample of 418 boys and 419 girls, ages 5–18 years, in urban Hyderabad examined the pattern of growth in children of different socio-economic status, assessed the applicability of a combination of anthropometric measurements to evaluate various grades of under-nutrition and also studied the association of nutritional status of parent and children, socio-economic status and with scholastic performance of school going and adolescent children, in their paper titled “Patterns of growth and scholastic performance”. The analysis suggests a relationship between scholastic performance and Mother’s education, Family size, Per capita income and Type of family. The relationship of these factors vary in order of importance of boys and girls; and Type of family bears no relationship with scholastic performance in case of boys but does among girls. Tanner–Lindgren discuss the “Mental Ability and Cognitive thinking” in Chapter 16. The subject has been considered in relation to sex, pubertal stage and socio-economic background. The study was conducted in two co-educational schools with different socioeconomic status in the vicinity of Stockholm, Sweden. It is a cross-sectional study on 282 pupils, between the ages of 10 and 15 years. The results support the hypothesis that those children who mature early physically also tend to mature early in mental development. This conclusion corroborates a previous longitudinal study (Westin-Lindgren, 1982). The tempo of physical maturation during 10–14 years plays an important role in explaining the success of children’s school performance. The third section, Population Differences in Growth, opens with the paper entitled “How Genetic are Human Body Proportions?” In this article, Bogin, Kapell, Varela Silvia, Orden, Smith and Loucky re-examine “the existing literature to see to what extent ethnic and population differences in body-proportions which are assumed to be of a genetic nature are, in fact, better explained by environmental plasticity in growth”. A new study of body proportions of children of Guatemalan immigrants living in the United States affirms the developmental plasticity in body proportions. These Mayan children exhibited a positive trend in growth caused by higher living standard, better sanitation and health care. The increase in stature is due mostly to relatively longer legs. Citing an experimental work on an insect (butterfly) the authors conclude “that there is a role of genetic, environmental, and hormonal interactions in the regulation of the growth of human body segments”. Hauspie and Dasgupta report on the Sarsuna–Barisha Longitudinal Growth Study in Chapter 18. They present the dynamics of growth of Bengali boys and girls based on the
406
Book reviews
monumental work of S.R. Das (during 1952–1966). The data comprise a 14 year longitudinal growth study on 303 boys and 260 girls, covering the age range 0.5–20 years and belonging to Rarhi Brahman, Dakshin Rarhi Kayastha and Vaidya subcastes of Bengali population residing in two adjacent villages (Sarsuna and Barisha) in South Suburban Municipality area of Calcutta (Kolkata). The mean height is 166.4 cm for boys at age 20 and 151.4 for girls at age 18 and growth continues beyond that age, although at a slow rate. The centiles for yearly increment reveal the classical pattern, and the mean ages of maximum velocity were reached at ages 14.1 in boys and 11.9 in girls, which do not differ substantially from corresponding values in Western populations. A comparison with Harpenden Longitudinal study comprising British growth data reveals that British boys are taller than the Bengali boys by 10 cm, and this difference is almost due to pre-pubertal growth. In the case of girls, the British sample is taller than the Bengali girls by 11 cm, of which 7 cm is due to pre-pubertal growth. The inter-relationship between various aspects of growth curve and the dynamics of sexual dimorphism in growth pattern are quite different between Indian (Bengali) and Western children. Linear Components of Growth among Rural Indian Children (Chapter 19), contributed by S.R. Rao, examines the effects of under-nutrition on the growth spurt and other linear components of growth. The data comprise longitudinal adolescent growth data on 673 boys ages 9–18 in seven villages around Pune during 1992–1996. Longitudinal data on some linear components for 587 boys and 433 girls have also been considered. Analyses show that the rural children had lower attained values than British or Indian well-off children for all the linear components of stature growth. Under-nutrition during adolescence delayed the growth spurt and also affected all linear components such as sitting height, leg-length, shoulder-width and foot length. The impact of under-nutrition was largest on sitting height. The paper titled “Growth Stunting among Children, Aged Birth to 5 years in Peri-Urban Kathmandu, Nepal”, contributed by T. Moffat, examines aspects of growth faltering in a low-income country, and the relationship between stunting and wasting, gender differences, seasonality and peri-urban/rural locations. 283 children (male and female) were measured for height, weight, upper arm circumference, upper arm muscle area and triceps skin fold. The results show that decreased growth velocity occurs from infancy into the second year of life; but the children did not appear to be stunted until 24 months of age. There is a marked increase in the Z-scores of weight for height (WHZ) among 12–24 months old children, which suggests that acute weight loss may precede linear growth retardation. Again, the prevalence of stunting is very high among peri-urban as opposed to rural children. Poverty seems to be the principal factor behind the phenomenon of stunting in the present sample as well as in many others. Chapter 21 explores “Ethnic and Sex Differences in Skelic Index”, among Fijian and Samoan children by Satake, Hattori and Kanazawa. The study, done in 1994–1995, focuses on the variation in Skelic Index (lower limb length/sitting height) among Samoan and Fijian children during childhood and adolescence, and thereby points to the ethnic and sex differences in body size in a cross-sectional sample. The sample included 251 Fijian school children (male and female), aged 6–17 years. The results of the analyses suggest that the ethnic influence on anthropometric characteristics and on the Skelic Index is independent of sex differences, and also that sex differences influence individuals from both ethnic groups in the same way.
Book reviews
407
Kimura’s paper on “Skeletal Maturity in Children of Mixed American and Japanese Parentage as assessed by the TW2-Method” is Chapter 22 of the book. The study is a part of a longitudinal anthropological investigation carried out during 1949–1965. The paper examines Skeletal Maturity of the children of Mixed Afro-American and Japanese parentage, using Tanner–White House 2 (TW2) method. The data consist of the radiographs of the right hand and the wrist, longitudinally twice a year through 1958–1965 on 300 boys and 157 girls and 234 boys and 106 girls of the World War II orphans, from 3 to 18 years of age. The skeletal age was assessed for all children based on 20 bone RUS and Carpal Age Systems of the TW2 method. Kimura suggests that most variations in skeletal maturation are genetically determined; and population difference in physique and growth may also reflect environmental factors. The fourth section of the book, Biological Aspects of Growth, begins with the paper by Eiben and Nemeth “Somatotypes of Budapest Children”. The paper is based on the first Hungarian National Growth Standard (HNGS) undertaken during 1982–1985. The sample contains 18 somatometric measurements on 5076 healthy 3–18-year-old children representing 1.5% of this age group, carried out during 1994–1995. Stature, body mass, arm and calf girths, bicondylar width of humerus and femur, skin fold thickness of the triceps, subscapular, suprailiac, medial calf have been utilized in somatotyping. The conclusions are that (a) Endomorphy shows sexual dimorphism in the relative fat content; (b) decrease in Endomorphy during puberty implies loss of fat in boys, but not in girls; (c) sexual dimorphism exists in the development of musculo–skeletal system from early childhood, evident in Mesomorphy; (d) Ectomorphy reflects the lengthening of the body as a result of pubertal spurt in girls 2 years earlier than boys. The material for Prokopec’s article, “Differential Rate of Growth of the Human Body Parts” (Chapter 24), comprises 14 body measurements on 300 Prague children (150 male and 150 female) taken longitudinally from birth through 20 years between 1956 and 1980. The initial number of children diminished throughout the survey to 30%. The results indicate that the girls were ahead of all measurements in attaining a certain percentage of the total increment from 1 month to 20 years. In both boys and girls, the head grows quickest and weight slowest; and growth of skeletal structures, height, length, width, circumference, lie between the two extremes. The period of greatest diversity in the rate of growth of body parts may imply a health risk. “Short-term Growth” (Chapter 25) is a contribution by M. Hermanussen, with a number of clinical implications related to pediatrics and patterns of growth. The author presents an exhaustive review of the literature on (1) the physiology of short-term growth; (2) growth as a periodic event; (3) growth as a saltatory event; (4) growth as a chaotic process; (5) daily growth measurements; (6) animal studies on short-term growth; (7) the mathematical analysis of short-term growth; (8) clinical implications of short-term growth; and (9) short time growth studies in neonates. Relations between Head Growth and Psychomotor Development in Low Birth Weight Children (Chapter 26), by Furmaga-Jablonska et al. explore the relation between physical growth and psychomotor development quotients in three groups of low-birth weight children on the basis of longitudinal observations on a sample of 283 children born in Lublin (Poland). The three groups of Low-Birth-Weight children were categorized on the basis of (1) Appropriate for Gestational Age (AGA); (2) Small for Date (SfD) and (3) Small
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Book reviews
for Gestational Age (SGA). Circumference of head of each child was taken at birth and followed up through the 24th month; and the level of General Development Quotient of each child was estimated by means of Brunet–Lezine Inventory (1951). On the basis of their findings, the authors concluded “that the measurements of head circumference during developmental period may be a potential screening test for evaluating the pyschomotoric disorders in the group of low-birth-weight children”. Growth of Thalassemic Children, authored by Banerjee et al., forms the concluding Chapter (27). A cohort of 126 children (81 males and 45 females) with homozygous beta-thalassemic and E-beta thalassemic, between 1 and 6 years of age constituted the sample of the study. Most of the sample belonged to low caste Hindu with low economic status. A sample of 71 (41 males and 30 females) non-thalassemics, belonging mostly to upper castes and slightly better economic condition, was used as the control sample. Body length/height and weight of both thalassemic children and the control group were measured through 6 years in a mixed longitudinal method. Both the measurements were compared with ICMR (Indian Council of Medical Research) and NCHS data. The findings reveal low values for both parameters at all ages compared to the non-thalassemic control group, both ICMR and NCHS. This is the first study on thalassemic children in India. The volume is enriched with the biographical sketch of Professor Sudhir Ranjan Das since his post-graduation in physics from Calcutta University in 1933. Born on 11 October 1909 in Khulna (Bangladesh), Professor Das passed away on 22 August 1998, at the age of 89. During his long activity in the field of anthropology, he served on the Anthropological Survey of India from 1948 to 1968, and Indian Statistical Institute from 1968 to 1973, with a formidable contribution in the field of physical anthropology, including being responsible for the monumental growth study—the Sarsuna–Barisha (name of two villages in South 24 Parganas, West Bengal India) Growth Study, for which he may be aptly called the dean of Indian auxology. The anthology is expected to be of considerable importance in influencing future research in the study of human growth. References World Health Organization, 1995. Physical Status: The Use and Interpretation of Anthropometry. WHO Technical Report Series 854. World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland. Chagnon, Y.C., Borecki, I.B., Perusse, L., Roy, S., Lacaille, M., Ho-Kim, M.A., Chagnon, M., Rice, T., Collier, G.R., Rao, D.C., Bouchard, C., 2001a. Genome-wide search for genes related to adiposity in the Quebec Family Study. Unpublished Manuscript. Chagnon, Y.C., Rice, T., Wilmore, J.H., Ho-Kim, M.A., Lacaille, M., Pare, C., Bouchard, C., Borecki, I.B., Gagnon, J., Perusse, L., Leon, A.S., Skinner, J.S., Rao, C., Bouchard, C., 2001b. Genome—wide search for genes related to body composition in Sedentary Caucasians from the Heritage Family Study, Unpublished Manuscript. Westin-Lindgren, G., 1982. Achievement and mental ability of physically late and early maturating school children related to their social background. J. Child Psychol. Psychiatry 23, 407–420.
Premananda Bharati Anthropology and Human Genetics Unit, Indian Statistical Institute 203 B.T. Road, Kolkata 700108, India E-mail address: [email protected] (P. Bharati) 20 June 2003 doi: 10.1016/S1570-677X(03)00072-8
Book reviews Perspective in Human Growth, Development and Maturation Parasmani Dasgupta, Ronald Houspie (Eds.), Kluwer Academic Publishers, The Netherlands, 2001, ISBN 1-4020-0000-6, pp. xvi + 364 The volume is a rich anthology of original papers encompassing the panorama of human auxology contributed by specialists from all over the world. There are 27 contributions in three broad categories: (a) Genetic and Environmental Factors, (b) Population Differences and Biological Aspects, and (c) Methodological Aspects of human growth. In a splendid foreword by J.M. Tanner, the world-renowned pioneer auxologist, refers to the importance of the monumental accomplishments of Professor Sudhir Ranjan Das, to whom the book is dedicated. The volume concludes with a brief sketch of the life and accomplishments of the late Das. The importance of his Sarsuna–Barisha Growth study deserves to be emphasized. The first chapter L.D. Voss recapitulates the history of the measurement of human growth, starting from the system of measuring the bodies of royal persons for burial purposes among the ancient Egyptians, up to the establishment of New Growth Clinics in London in recent years. Chapter 2 is dedicated to individual Physical Growth Models and Biological Parameters of the Japanese population. The authors (Shohoji and Sumiya) present a growth model with fewer free growth parameters, and introduce an extended Count-Gompertz growth model. In addition, they study the stable relationships among adult height and some biological parameters such as the age at menarche and age at peak height velocity. LMS-method involving Box and Cox Power (L), normalized mean (M) and co-efficient of variation (S) has been applied to smooth centile curves of height of Basque children in Chapter 3 by Rosque, San Martin, Fernandez-Lopez, Salces, Rebato, Vinagre and Susanne. The study was conducted in order to construct cross-sectional growth charts; the LMS method was chosen, because it affords suitable centile values of cross-sectional samples of moderate size. The application of the LMS to the un-standardized height yields good correspondence between the observed and expected values. The paper “New International Growth Reference for Young Children” by De Onis, Victoria, Garza, Frongillo and Cole, based on the recommendation of the World Health Organization (WHO) Expert Committee (1995) on “Physical Status: the use and interpretation of anthropometry”, is aimed at replacing the NCHS-WHO reference data with a new international growth reference. The recommended approach represents a significant departure from prior growth references. Application of the Fels method and Tanner–Whitehouse methods for the assessment of skeletal ages of school children is the subject of Chapter 5 by Pen Reyes and Malina. The skeletal maturity of the hand and wrist in a sample of school children in Oaxaca have been assessed using the two methods, and the skeletal ages compared. The two methods 1570-677X/$ – see front matter © 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
404
Book reviews
did not provide the same estimates of skeletal age, among children living under generally impoverished health and nutritional circumstances. Assessment of childhood and adolescents body composition is discussed in Chapter 6 by Pietrobelli, Heo and Faith. The methods for pediatric body composition assessment are described. The methods discussed are Dual Energy X-ray Absorptionmetry (DXA), CT and MRI Imaging, Body Mass Index (BMI), Skin fold assessment and Bio-impedance Analysis (BIA). The authors warn that all these methods have their limitations, and as a consequence, both clinicians and researchers should be cautious in using these methods by themselves. Chapter 7 is dedicated to the methodology of studying the Genetics Traits by Rao and Mazumdar. Along with methodological considerations such as Study design, Lumping and Splitting Strategy, attention is drawn to the Genetics of Fat Patterning. Evidence of linkage for Body Mass Index (BMI) from genome-wide scans in two family studies (Quebec Family Study, QFS, Chagnon et al., 2001a, and Heritage Family Study, Chagnon et al., 2001b) suggests that as many as six genomic regions may be involved, each with a LOD score ≥ 2.0, which clearly indicates that there are genomic regions involved in the inheritance of BMI. In Chapter 8, Rebato, Rosique, Pietrobelli, Chatterjee (M), Saha and Dasgupta dealt discuss subcutaneous adipose tissue distribution in relation to socio-economic level. They used Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to obtain the pattern of fat distribution. The investigation was done on Bengali Hindu boys of Kolkata, aged 7–16 years. Four skin folds and calf circumference of the subjects provided the material for the study. In the PCA, the components show relationship of shape, but no such relationship with body size. Socio-economic effects are also considered; the middle income group (SES2) has a fat distribution less centralized than either SES1 or SES3. Chapter 9, by Brown and Townsend on “Dentofacial morphology, growth and genetics: a study of Australian aborigines” is of immense significance from the point of view of clinical dentistry as well as human biological variation. The central theme of the research is ‘the importance of understanding that various component of human masticatory system [are] inter-related morphologically and functionally’. The aborigines studied, were traditionally nomadic and later adopted to European diet and life-style. “Riddles in human development patterns: a few family case studies” is discussed in Chapter 10. Singh studies the physical stature of individuals through generations in three families of Patman village in Uttar Pradesh, India. In general, the data do not reveal any clear mode of inheritance and the expression of stature attainment. In the study titled, “Nutrition in Venezuela at the end of the millennium” (Chapter 11), Lopez–Blanco explores the change in nutritional status of the Venezuelans, as a consequence of secular changes since the 1930s. The author concludes, “. . . Venezuela is in the midst of a demographic, epidemiological and nutritional transition. In fact, the traditional concepts of undernutrition in poverty and overnutrition in wealth is not real any more: in one family— even of the lowest social level—one can find an undernourished infant, an anaemic mother and an obese father with a high risk of NCCD (Non-Communicable Chronic Disease)”. Eveleth’s paper titled, “Thoughts on secular trends in growth and development” is presented in Chapter 12. The author observes that the rapidly changing political, economic or climatic situation in the world, such as the break-up in Yugoslavia, violence in Israel and Indonesia, hurricanes in Mexico, floods in Bangladesh, AIDS in Africa, East Asia, Europe and the Americas, newly emerging diseases, development of new drugs and access
Book reviews
405
to them, drought in Africa and Australia may all influence child growth. The importance of anthropometric measurements of well-defined samples at regular intervals in the evaluation of policies as well as in formulating future national policies is also emphasized. The paper on Secular trends and Long-term Serial Growth studies by Roche and Towne emphasizes the design of such studies. ‘The major purpose is to describe growth patterns, predict future growth, analyze the relative importance of determinants of growth and development, and evaluate the significance of changes during childhood and adulthood’. Chapter 14, ‘Secular trends indicate specific factors’ by Henneberg, discusses the muchdebated issue of the direct association between secular changes in height and socio-economic conditions. The author suggests that ‘Secular trends must be caused by specific factors varying from population to population rather than by the general improvement in living conditions’. The author has also points out that ‘typically more than 90% of variation in height is due to the variation of the underlying genetic material’. Visweswara Rao, Balakrishna and Veena’s study on a sample of 418 boys and 419 girls, ages 5–18 years, in urban Hyderabad examined the pattern of growth in children of different socio-economic status, assessed the applicability of a combination of anthropometric measurements to evaluate various grades of under-nutrition and also studied the association of nutritional status of parent and children, socio-economic status and with scholastic performance of school going and adolescent children, in their paper titled “Patterns of growth and scholastic performance”. The analysis suggests a relationship between scholastic performance and Mother’s education, Family size, Per capita income and Type of family. The relationship of these factors vary in order of importance of boys and girls; and Type of family bears no relationship with scholastic performance in case of boys but does among girls. Tanner–Lindgren discuss the “Mental Ability and Cognitive thinking” in Chapter 16. The subject has been considered in relation to sex, pubertal stage and socio-economic background. The study was conducted in two co-educational schools with different socioeconomic status in the vicinity of Stockholm, Sweden. It is a cross-sectional study on 282 pupils, between the ages of 10 and 15 years. The results support the hypothesis that those children who mature early physically also tend to mature early in mental development. This conclusion corroborates a previous longitudinal study (Westin-Lindgren, 1982). The tempo of physical maturation during 10–14 years plays an important role in explaining the success of children’s school performance. The third section, Population Differences in Growth, opens with the paper entitled “How Genetic are Human Body Proportions?” In this article, Bogin, Kapell, Varela Silvia, Orden, Smith and Loucky re-examine “the existing literature to see to what extent ethnic and population differences in body-proportions which are assumed to be of a genetic nature are, in fact, better explained by environmental plasticity in growth”. A new study of body proportions of children of Guatemalan immigrants living in the United States affirms the developmental plasticity in body proportions. These Mayan children exhibited a positive trend in growth caused by higher living standard, better sanitation and health care. The increase in stature is due mostly to relatively longer legs. Citing an experimental work on an insect (butterfly) the authors conclude “that there is a role of genetic, environmental, and hormonal interactions in the regulation of the growth of human body segments”. Hauspie and Dasgupta report on the Sarsuna–Barisha Longitudinal Growth Study in Chapter 18. They present the dynamics of growth of Bengali boys and girls based on the
406
Book reviews
monumental work of S.R. Das (during 1952–1966). The data comprise a 14 year longitudinal growth study on 303 boys and 260 girls, covering the age range 0.5–20 years and belonging to Rarhi Brahman, Dakshin Rarhi Kayastha and Vaidya subcastes of Bengali population residing in two adjacent villages (Sarsuna and Barisha) in South Suburban Municipality area of Calcutta (Kolkata). The mean height is 166.4 cm for boys at age 20 and 151.4 for girls at age 18 and growth continues beyond that age, although at a slow rate. The centiles for yearly increment reveal the classical pattern, and the mean ages of maximum velocity were reached at ages 14.1 in boys and 11.9 in girls, which do not differ substantially from corresponding values in Western populations. A comparison with Harpenden Longitudinal study comprising British growth data reveals that British boys are taller than the Bengali boys by 10 cm, and this difference is almost due to pre-pubertal growth. In the case of girls, the British sample is taller than the Bengali girls by 11 cm, of which 7 cm is due to pre-pubertal growth. The inter-relationship between various aspects of growth curve and the dynamics of sexual dimorphism in growth pattern are quite different between Indian (Bengali) and Western children. Linear Components of Growth among Rural Indian Children (Chapter 19), contributed by S.R. Rao, examines the effects of under-nutrition on the growth spurt and other linear components of growth. The data comprise longitudinal adolescent growth data on 673 boys ages 9–18 in seven villages around Pune during 1992–1996. Longitudinal data on some linear components for 587 boys and 433 girls have also been considered. Analyses show that the rural children had lower attained values than British or Indian well-off children for all the linear components of stature growth. Under-nutrition during adolescence delayed the growth spurt and also affected all linear components such as sitting height, leg-length, shoulder-width and foot length. The impact of under-nutrition was largest on sitting height. The paper titled “Growth Stunting among Children, Aged Birth to 5 years in Peri-Urban Kathmandu, Nepal”, contributed by T. Moffat, examines aspects of growth faltering in a low-income country, and the relationship between stunting and wasting, gender differences, seasonality and peri-urban/rural locations. 283 children (male and female) were measured for height, weight, upper arm circumference, upper arm muscle area and triceps skin fold. The results show that decreased growth velocity occurs from infancy into the second year of life; but the children did not appear to be stunted until 24 months of age. There is a marked increase in the Z-scores of weight for height (WHZ) among 12–24 months old children, which suggests that acute weight loss may precede linear growth retardation. Again, the prevalence of stunting is very high among peri-urban as opposed to rural children. Poverty seems to be the principal factor behind the phenomenon of stunting in the present sample as well as in many others. Chapter 21 explores “Ethnic and Sex Differences in Skelic Index”, among Fijian and Samoan children by Satake, Hattori and Kanazawa. The study, done in 1994–1995, focuses on the variation in Skelic Index (lower limb length/sitting height) among Samoan and Fijian children during childhood and adolescence, and thereby points to the ethnic and sex differences in body size in a cross-sectional sample. The sample included 251 Fijian school children (male and female), aged 6–17 years. The results of the analyses suggest that the ethnic influence on anthropometric characteristics and on the Skelic Index is independent of sex differences, and also that sex differences influence individuals from both ethnic groups in the same way.
Book reviews
407
Kimura’s paper on “Skeletal Maturity in Children of Mixed American and Japanese Parentage as assessed by the TW2-Method” is Chapter 22 of the book. The study is a part of a longitudinal anthropological investigation carried out during 1949–1965. The paper examines Skeletal Maturity of the children of Mixed Afro-American and Japanese parentage, using Tanner–White House 2 (TW2) method. The data consist of the radiographs of the right hand and the wrist, longitudinally twice a year through 1958–1965 on 300 boys and 157 girls and 234 boys and 106 girls of the World War II orphans, from 3 to 18 years of age. The skeletal age was assessed for all children based on 20 bone RUS and Carpal Age Systems of the TW2 method. Kimura suggests that most variations in skeletal maturation are genetically determined; and population difference in physique and growth may also reflect environmental factors. The fourth section of the book, Biological Aspects of Growth, begins with the paper by Eiben and Nemeth “Somatotypes of Budapest Children”. The paper is based on the first Hungarian National Growth Standard (HNGS) undertaken during 1982–1985. The sample contains 18 somatometric measurements on 5076 healthy 3–18-year-old children representing 1.5% of this age group, carried out during 1994–1995. Stature, body mass, arm and calf girths, bicondylar width of humerus and femur, skin fold thickness of the triceps, subscapular, suprailiac, medial calf have been utilized in somatotyping. The conclusions are that (a) Endomorphy shows sexual dimorphism in the relative fat content; (b) decrease in Endomorphy during puberty implies loss of fat in boys, but not in girls; (c) sexual dimorphism exists in the development of musculo–skeletal system from early childhood, evident in Mesomorphy; (d) Ectomorphy reflects the lengthening of the body as a result of pubertal spurt in girls 2 years earlier than boys. The material for Prokopec’s article, “Differential Rate of Growth of the Human Body Parts” (Chapter 24), comprises 14 body measurements on 300 Prague children (150 male and 150 female) taken longitudinally from birth through 20 years between 1956 and 1980. The initial number of children diminished throughout the survey to 30%. The results indicate that the girls were ahead of all measurements in attaining a certain percentage of the total increment from 1 month to 20 years. In both boys and girls, the head grows quickest and weight slowest; and growth of skeletal structures, height, length, width, circumference, lie between the two extremes. The period of greatest diversity in the rate of growth of body parts may imply a health risk. “Short-term Growth” (Chapter 25) is a contribution by M. Hermanussen, with a number of clinical implications related to pediatrics and patterns of growth. The author presents an exhaustive review of the literature on (1) the physiology of short-term growth; (2) growth as a periodic event; (3) growth as a saltatory event; (4) growth as a chaotic process; (5) daily growth measurements; (6) animal studies on short-term growth; (7) the mathematical analysis of short-term growth; (8) clinical implications of short-term growth; and (9) short time growth studies in neonates. Relations between Head Growth and Psychomotor Development in Low Birth Weight Children (Chapter 26), by Furmaga-Jablonska et al. explore the relation between physical growth and psychomotor development quotients in three groups of low-birth weight children on the basis of longitudinal observations on a sample of 283 children born in Lublin (Poland). The three groups of Low-Birth-Weight children were categorized on the basis of (1) Appropriate for Gestational Age (AGA); (2) Small for Date (SfD) and (3) Small
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for Gestational Age (SGA). Circumference of head of each child was taken at birth and followed up through the 24th month; and the level of General Development Quotient of each child was estimated by means of Brunet–Lezine Inventory (1951). On the basis of their findings, the authors concluded “that the measurements of head circumference during developmental period may be a potential screening test for evaluating the pyschomotoric disorders in the group of low-birth-weight children”. Growth of Thalassemic Children, authored by Banerjee et al., forms the concluding Chapter (27). A cohort of 126 children (81 males and 45 females) with homozygous beta-thalassemic and E-beta thalassemic, between 1 and 6 years of age constituted the sample of the study. Most of the sample belonged to low caste Hindu with low economic status. A sample of 71 (41 males and 30 females) non-thalassemics, belonging mostly to upper castes and slightly better economic condition, was used as the control sample. Body length/height and weight of both thalassemic children and the control group were measured through 6 years in a mixed longitudinal method. Both the measurements were compared with ICMR (Indian Council of Medical Research) and NCHS data. The findings reveal low values for both parameters at all ages compared to the non-thalassemic control group, both ICMR and NCHS. This is the first study on thalassemic children in India. The volume is enriched with the biographical sketch of Professor Sudhir Ranjan Das since his post-graduation in physics from Calcutta University in 1933. Born on 11 October 1909 in Khulna (Bangladesh), Professor Das passed away on 22 August 1998, at the age of 89. During his long activity in the field of anthropology, he served on the Anthropological Survey of India from 1948 to 1968, and Indian Statistical Institute from 1968 to 1973, with a formidable contribution in the field of physical anthropology, including being responsible for the monumental growth study—the Sarsuna–Barisha (name of two villages in South 24 Parganas, West Bengal India) Growth Study, for which he may be aptly called the dean of Indian auxology. The anthology is expected to be of considerable importance in influencing future research in the study of human growth. References World Health Organization, 1995. Physical Status: The Use and Interpretation of Anthropometry. WHO Technical Report Series 854. World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland. Chagnon, Y.C., Borecki, I.B., Perusse, L., Roy, S., Lacaille, M., Ho-Kim, M.A., Chagnon, M., Rice, T., Collier, G.R., Rao, D.C., Bouchard, C., 2001a. Genome-wide search for genes related to adiposity in the Quebec Family Study. Unpublished Manuscript. Chagnon, Y.C., Rice, T., Wilmore, J.H., Ho-Kim, M.A., Lacaille, M., Pare, C., Bouchard, C., Borecki, I.B., Gagnon, J., Perusse, L., Leon, A.S., Skinner, J.S., Rao, C., Bouchard, C., 2001b. Genome—wide search for genes related to body composition in Sedentary Caucasians from the Heritage Family Study, Unpublished Manuscript. Westin-Lindgren, G., 1982. Achievement and mental ability of physically late and early maturating school children related to their social background. J. Child Psychol. Psychiatry 23, 407–420.
Premananda Bharati Anthropology and Human Genetics Unit, Indian Statistical Institute 203 B.T. Road, Kolkata 700108, India E-mail address: [email protected] (P. Bharati) 20 June 2003 doi: 10.1016/S1570-677X(03)00072-8