Nutrients Other than Selenium Are Important for Promoting Children’s Health in Kashin-Beck Disease Areas

Abstract

Overall nutritional status has been proved associated with people's health. The overall nutritional status of children in Kashin-Beck disease (KBD) areas has been overlooked for decades. Therefore, it is worth investigating in the current generation to gather evidence and make suggestions for improvement. A cross-sectional study with three 24-h dietary recalls was conducted to collect raw data on the daily food intake of children. Recorded food was converted into daily nutrient intakes using CDGSS 3.0 software. WHO AnthroPlus software was used to analyse the BMI-for-age z-score (BAZ) for estimating the overall nutrition status of children. All the comparisons and regression analyses were conducted with SPSS 18.0 software. Multiple nutrient intakes among children from the Se-supplemented KBD-endemic were under the estimated average requirement. The protein-to-carbohydrate ratio (P/C ratio) was significantly higher in children from the non-Se-supplemented KBD-endemic area than the other areas (P < 0.001). The children's BAZ was negatively associated with age (B = −0.095, P < 0.001) and the number of KBD relatives (B = −0.277, P = 0.04), and it was positively associated with better housing conditions, receiving colostrum, and daily intakes of niacin and zinc by multivariate regression analysis (F = 10.337, R = 0.609, P < 0.001).Compared to non-Se-supplemented KBD-endemic area and non-endemic areas, children in Se-supplemented KBD-endemic areas have an insufficient intake of multiple nutrients. School breakfast and lunch programmes are recommended, and strict implementation is the key to ensuring a positive effect.

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