A Comprehensive Approach to Child Malnutrition Prevention: Standardized Assessment Using Anthropometry and Bioimpedance Methods

Abstract

Introduction: The rise in weight gain has been occurring at an accelerated pace in recent decades, affecting individuals regardless of gender, ethnicity, age, or socioeconomic status. Overweight and obesity are characterized by an excessive accumulation of body fat, which is closely linked to a wide range of chronic non-communicable diseases, imposing a significant burden on healthcare systems.Objective: To develop a strategy for the prevention of child malnutrition based on standardized assessment through anthropometry and bioimpedance methods.Methodology: This study employs a descriptive, prospective, and longitudinal research approach, grounded in a theoretical framework that comprehensively examines nutritional processes during childhood.Results: The need for early diagnostic tools of low technical complexity and cost-effectiveness becomes evident, particularly for populations at higher risk. By supplementing the assessment of body composition with electrical impedance, we enhance its diagnostic capabilities, addressing the limitations of relying solely on the body mass index, especially in children. This approach can help identify excess adiposity even in cases where the body mass index suggests normality.Conclusions: The prevention strategy for overweight and obesity, designed based on the analysis of body composition using electrical impedance in school-age children, proves valuable. This diagnostic method allows us to discern the various components of the human body and express them in percentages, enabling the identification of children with excess adiposity, even when the body mass index suggests normality in those evaluated.