STATURE, WEIGHT OF CHILDREN, ADOLESCENTS AGE (6-19 YEARS) AND MENARCHEAL AGE OF HAUSA GIRLS RESIDENT IN KANO STATE

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Department of Medicine

ABSTRACT
Stature is increasingly used as measure of the health and wellness(standard of living and quality) of population This work was done by taking measurements of height and weight of school children 6-11 years (n=1050) and adolescents 12-19 years (n=1440) of Hausa ethnic extraction of both sexesfrom Kano State using Stadiometer and estimation of leg length by calculating difference between stature and sitting height and comparing these data with parental level of education and birth order. A total of 2400 Students (1134 males and 1346 females) participated in the research. All the eight metropolitan local governments of the state and twelve outside local governments, three in each of the northern, southern, eastern and western parts of the State were randomly selected for the research. Information on Menarcheal age, Menstrual cycle and Menstrual blood flow of menstruating girls were collected by means of questionnaires. Data were analysed using SPSS 16.0 and statistical values acceptable at p<0.05. Children were observed to be under weight, (Male BMI; 17.61kg/m2 and Female BMI; 17.54 kg/m2), adolescents were observed to have normal weight (Male BMI; 21.67kg/m2 and Female BMI; 22.59kg/m2). Stature was observed to correlate positively with parental level of education and birth order. Height growth spurt was observed to be between the ages of 12 years and 13 years for both males and females. Correlations between stature, weight, birth order, birth weight, BMI, sitting height and leg length were established. Mean menarcheal age of menstruating Hausa girls was observed to be at the age of 14 years and linear equations for prediction of stature using age, weight, BMI, sitting height andleg length were established. It was also observed that the study population were observed to have normal progressive pattern of growth with female adolescents having higher values of the measured anthropometric parameters while male children were observed to have higher values of the measured anthropometric parameters.