Indiana daily times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1914-1922, 1922-01-19
$40 CHILDREN
UNDERWEIGHT IN
THREE SCHOOLS
Nutrition Workers InUesti-
gate Conditions in Marion
County.

Reports made to the Marion County
tuberculosis Association today by nutr1-
ton class workers and representatives
of the Marion County Parent-Teacher
Federation showed that hundreds of
school children in schools outside the
city are underweight and that corrective
steps of some sort should be taken at
once in all schools to bring the under
nourished children up to normal.
More than $40 children in three county
schools have just been weighed and OF
this number 1927 per cent, were found
to be underweight by per cent, or more,
when their weights were compared with
their heights and ages.
INVESTIGATE BEECH GROVE
BROAD RIPPLE, BEN DAVIS.
The three schools in which the studies
of child health were made were grade
schools at Beech Grove, Broad Ripple
and Ben Davis. Of the S45 children
weighed 1927 per cent were found to be
underweight, 35.5 per cent were found
normal, 28.5 per cent were on the bor-
derline between normal condition and
an underweight condition and 81 per
cent were overweight. The county In
vestigation was carried on by the local
anti-tuberculosis association with a
view TO SuDDIeU1euIluS WOIA uOste
In the city schools, where it was dis
covered last fall that thousands Of the
city school children were suffering from
undernOurishment. Under the direction
of the tuberculosis association and with
the cooperation of parents and school
authorities, nutritional classes have been
functioning for several months and rapid
gains in weight have been reported BIZ
many children.
OF the S45 children weighed in the
three county schools, 40 we've boys and
49, per cent of these were underweight.
OF the 405 girls weighed, 277, or 31.6 per
cent were underweight.
At the Broad Ripple grade school PIP
children were weighed, 401 per cent Of
them or a total of 100 children, were not
up to normal weight for their height and
age Of the total at this school, 1873 were
boys and 1919 per cent of this number
was underweight while 1870 were girls, Of
which total 40.3 per cent were under
weight.
SECOND LOWEST
IN PERCENTAGE.
The children Of the Beech Grove school,
according to the announcement today,
have the proud record of being the sec,
ond lowest in the county in point Of per-
centage of underweight pupils. Of 291
children weighed at that school, only 267
per cent were underweight. The best
school that has been found so far in the
city or county was a school for colOred
children at North and Agnes streets,
where the percentage of underweight
children was D. st. Bridget's school was
third in the list of county and city
schools with an exceptionally low num-
Der of children who were not up to nor
NAL in weight.
At the Ben Davis grade school 2S2
children were weighed and 81 per cent
of them were underweight. OF 149 boys
weighed at that school 34.2 per cent were
underweight and of 1873 girls weighed,
1913 per cent were not up to standard.
The cooperation of parents of under
weight children. who are observing The
health rules and the eating requirements
of the city's new nutrition classes, has
been absolutely essential ITO the recovery
of the children concerned, according to a
statement from Mary A. Meyers, execu-
tive secretary Of the tuberculosis associa-
ton Nutrition workers for the associa-
ton reported that at school No. u, West
and McCarty streets, Catherine Holding
had "gone over the top" in the nutrition
class, having gained 912 pounds in twelve
weeks of adherence to the nutritional
rules.
In addition to eating the food pre-
scribed in the courses the girl consci-
entiously observed all the rules of rest