The Intricate Relationship between Chronic Undernutrition, Impaired Linear Growth and Delayed Puberty: Is ‘catch-up’ growth possible during adolescence?

The Intricate Relationship between Chronic Undernutrition, Impaired Linear Growth and Delayed Puberty: Is ‘catch-up’ growth possible during adolescence?

AUTHOR(S)
Susan Campisi; Bianca Carducci; Olle Söder; Zulfiqar Bhutta

Chronic undernutrition is characterized by long-term exposure to food of insufficient quality and inadequate quantity, including restricted intake of energy, protein, fat, micronutrients, essential amino acids, vitamins and minerals. Physiologically, in a state of chronic food insufficiency, the human body conserves energy by prioritizing essential metabolic processes resulting in impaired linear growth and delayed reproductive maturation. Consequently, height can theoretically be considered a measure of an individual’s cumulative health and nutrition. Therefore, a deviation from the ‘normal’ height relative to one’s age represents a deviation from one’s optimal growth and, potentially, the presence of other issues. Similarly, the delayed onset of puberty is another common physiological response to food insufficiency, often accompanying impaired linear growth. Chronic undernutrition can arise from chronic disease, congenital abnormalities and insufficient food intake. In this review, we will explore the hypothesis of CUG during adolescence, given the relationship between impaired linear growth and the delayed onset of puberty in children suffering from chronic undernutrition due to a lack of sufficient quality and quantity of food.

Cite this publication | No. of pages: 32 | Thematic area: Adolescents | Tags: adolescents, growth rate, nutrition
Recueil Innocenti de Recherches sur l’Adolescence 10

Recueil Innocenti de Recherches sur l’Adolescence 10

AUTHOR(S)
Emanuela Bianchera

Published: 2018 Miscellanea
Synthèse trimestrielle présentant les ressources et les nouvelles les plus importantes parues au cours des trois derniers mois dans le domaine de la recherche sur le bien-être des adolescents.
Resumen Innocenti de Investigación sobre la Adolescencia 10

Resumen Innocenti de Investigación sobre la Adolescencia 10

AUTHOR(S)
Emanuela Bianchera

Published: 2018 Miscellanea
Resumen trimestral que destaca los hallazgos más significativos de la investigación sobre el bienestar de los
adolescentes durante los tres últimos meses.
Innocenti Research Digest on Adolescence 10

Innocenti Research Digest on Adolescence 10

AUTHOR(S)
Emanuela Bianchera

Published: 2018 Miscellanea
A quarterly research digest highlighting the most important news and resources in adolescent well-being over the last three months.
2017 Results Report

2017 Results Report

Published: 2018 Innocenti Publications

Our latest annual Results Report presents a review of the Office of Research - Innocenti’s top-line results delivered in 2017. It contains an excellent summary of how our research contributes to impact for children. Selected key results are highlighted for all research and capacity-building areas, while ‘deeper dive’ case studies provide in-depth narratives. The report also highlights capacity building, promotion of ethical research, and communications and operations milestones in 2017. Importantly, the report describes the Office of Research’s expanding role as a physical and virtual convening space for dialogue and critical thinking on issues concerning children and adolescents, in support of UNICEF’s new global Strategic Plan.

Resumen Innocenti de Investigación sobre la Adolescencia 9

Resumen Innocenti de Investigación sobre la Adolescencia 9

Published: 2018 Miscellanea
Resumen trimestral que destaca los hallazgos más significativos de la investigación sobre el bienestar de los adolescentes durante los tres últimos meses.
Recueil Innocenti de Recherches sur l’Adolescence 9

Recueil Innocenti de Recherches sur l’Adolescence 9

Published: 2018 Miscellanea
Synthèse trimestrielle présentant les ressources et les nouvelles les plus importantes parues au cours des trois derniers mois dans le domaine de la recherche sur le bien-être des adolescents.
Innocenti Research Digest on Adolescence 9

Innocenti Research Digest on Adolescence 9

AUTHOR(S)
Emanuela Bianchera

Published: 2018 Miscellanea
A quarterly research digest highlighting the most important news and resources in adolescent well-being over the last three months.
An Evidence Gap Map on Adolescent Well-being in Low- and Middle-income Countries: A focus on the domains of protection, participation, and financial and material well-being. Study Protocol.

An Evidence Gap Map on Adolescent Well-being in Low- and Middle-income Countries: A focus on the domains of protection, participation, and financial and material well-being. Study Protocol.

AUTHOR(S)
Shivit Bakrania; Anita Ghimire

Published: 2018 Miscellanea
The objective of this evidence gap map (EGM) is to provide an overview of the existing evidence on the effectiveness of interventions (at the macro, meso and micro levels) aimed at improving adolescent well-being in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Its focus is on the outcome domains of protection, participation and financial and material well-being. Outcomes relating to the enabling environment for adolescents are also included to capture the contextual influences that might affect the well-being of adolescents.
 
This study protocol outlines the criteria used to consider studies for inclusion in the EGM. Only studies that are explicitly impact evaluations or systematic reviews were included and the target study population were adolescents aged 10 to 19 years. The geographic scope were LMICs as defined by the World Bank and all relevant studies written in English, French and Spanish, and published from the year 2000 onwards were included. The research team employed long-form or short-form search strategies, with search terms formulated around the proposed population, intervention, outcome, geographical focus and research design categories. The interactive EGM is available online at www.unicef-irc.org/evidence-gap-map. The EGM report is available at https://www.unicef-irc.org/publications/931/
The Adolescent Brain: A second window of opportunity - A compendium

The Adolescent Brain: A second window of opportunity - A compendium

AUTHOR(S)
Nikola Balvin; Prerna Banati

Published: 2017 Miscellanea

In 2016, UNICEF hosted The Adolescent Brain: A second window of opportunity, a symposium that brought together experts in adolescent neuroscience to discuss this emerging science and how we can apply it to support all adolescents – but especially those already facing risks to their well-being, including poverty, deprivation, conflict and crisis.  The articles in this compendium elaborate on some of the ideas shared at the symposium. Together, they provide a broad view of the dynamic interactions among physical, sexual and brain development that take place during adolescence. They highlight some of the risks to optimal development – including toxic stress, which can interfere with the formation of brain connections, and other vulnerabilities unique to the onset of puberty and independence. They also point to the opportunities for developing interventions that can build on earlier investments in child development – consolidating gains and even offsetting the effects of deficits and traumas experienced earlier in childhood.

Recueil Innocenti de Recherches sur l’Adolescence 8

Recueil Innocenti de Recherches sur l’Adolescence 8

Published: 2017 Miscellanea

Synthèse trimestrielle présentant les ressources et les nouvelles les plus importantes parues au cours des trois derniers mois dans le domaine de la recherche sur le bien-être des adolescents.

Resumen Innocenti de Investigación sobre la Adolescencia 8

Resumen Innocenti de Investigación sobre la Adolescencia 8

Published: 2017 Miscellanea
Resumen trimestral que destaca los hallazgos más significativos de la investigación sobre el bienestar de los adolescentes durante los tres últimos meses.
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