Sexual Dimorphism and Age Variations in Anthropometry , Body Composition and Nutritional Status among Kora Mudi Tribals of Bankura District , West Bengal , India

The present study was undertaken to investigate age and sex variations in anthropometry, body composition and nutritional status among Kora Mudis, a tribal population of Bankura District, West Bengal, India. A total of 500 (250 males and 250 females) adult (18.0 < age ≤ 65.0 years) Kora Mudis of two villages of Bankura District (approximately 160 km from Kolkata), namely Phulberia and Siromonipur were studied. Anthropometric measurements included height, weight, mid upper arm circumference (MUAC), biceps (BSF), triceps (TSF), subscapular (SUBSF) and suprailiac (SUPSF) skinfolds. Body mass index (BMI) and several body composition measures including percent body fat (PBF), fat mass (FM), fat mass index (FMI), mid upper arm fat area (MUAFA), mid upper arm muscle area (MUAMA) and total body water (TBW) were derived. BMI was used as a measure of nutritional status. Undernutrition was evaluated as BMI < 18.5 kg/m. Men had significantly greater mean height, weight, MUAC, BMI, TBW and MUAMA compared to women. On the other had, women had significantly greater mean BSF, TSF, SUBSF, SUPSF, PBF, FM, FMI and MUAFA. Among men, there existed significant age variations in mean weight, BMI, MUAC, TBW and MUAMA, whilst among women there existed significant age variations in means of all variables except MUAC and MUAMA. Age was significantly (p < 0.01) negatively correlated with BMI (r = 0.194), FM (r = 0.302), FMI (r = 0.300), PBF (r = 0.335) and MUAFA (r = 0.291) in women. In men, age was not significantly correlated with any variable. Significant heterogeneity (p < 0.05) in Pearson correlation coefficients (r) between the sexes was observed for PBF, FM, FMI and MUAFA. Regression analyses of sex (sex coded as: men = 1, women = 2) with anthropometry and body composition measures revealed that sex had significant impact on all measures. Furthermore, regression analyses of age with anthropometric and body composition measures demonstrated that in men age had significant negative impact on BSF (t = 2.310, p < 0.01) only. However, in women, age had significant negative impact on most of the variables. Moreover, there was an increasing trend in the frequency of undernutrition with increasing age. The highest rates were observed among individuals aged ≥ 50 years (m = 60.0 %, w = 83.33 %). In conclusion, this study provided evidence that there existed significant age and sex variations in anthropometry and body composition among adult Kora Mudis. The frequency of undernutrition was much higher among older subjects. Appropriate nutritional intervention programs are needed for implementation in this ethnic group. Author’s Address: Samiran Bisai, Kaushik Bose, Sanjib Ganguli, Hasina Mumtaz, Ashish Mukhopadhyay and Mithu Bhadra, Department of Anthropology, Vidyasagar University, Midnapore 721 102, West Bengal, India. Address for Correspondence: Dr. Kaushik Bose, Reader, Department of Anthropology, Vidyasagar University, Midnapore 721 102, West Bengal, India. E-mail: banda@vsnl.net © Kamla-Raj Enterprises 2008 Health and Nutritional Problems Tribes and Tribals, Special Volume No. 2: 103-109 (2008) of Indigenous Populations Kaushik Bose, Guest Editor Sokal, R. R. and F. J. Rohlf. 1986. Biometry: The principles and practice of statistics in biological research. New York: W. H. Freeman. Suzana, S. , J. Earland, A. R. Suriah and A. M. Warnes. 2002. “Social and health factors influencing poor nutritional status among rural elderly Malays. ” Journal of Nutrition Health and Aging, 6: 363-369. Topal, Y.S. and P. K Samal. 2001. “Causes for variation in social and economic conditions among tribes of Indian Central Himalaya: A comparative study. ” Man in India, 81: 87-88. Ulijaszek, S.J. and D. A. Kerr. 1999. “Anthropometric measurement error and the assessment of nutritional status. ” British Journal of Nutrition, 82: 165-177. World Health Organization. 1995. Physical Status: the Use and Interpretation of Anthropometry. Technical Report Series no. 854. Geneva: World Health Organization. Zverev, Y. and J. Chisi. 2004. “Anthropometric indices in rural Malawians aged 45-75 years. ” Annals of Human Biology, 31: 29-37.