Malnutrition and its association with intellectual coefficient in children from a school in Seville de oro. Province of Azuay, Ecuador, 2023

Abstract

Introduction: in Ecuador, malnutrition is considered a public health problem since it affects approximately one in four children. This figure increases in the Inter-Andean region, since it is influenced by the socioeconomic situation or nutrition, causing problems in cognitive development due to compromised IQ. Aim: to determine malnutrition and its association with IQ in school children from 6 to 10 years old who belong to two rural schools in the canton of Sevilla de Oro in the province of Azuay, Ecuador. Methodology: observational, analytical, cross-sectional study, 119 children from 6 to 10 years of age were used as a sample, selected by stratified random sampling. The parameters of the World Health Organization for weight and height were used to determine the body mass index for placement in the corresponding percentile. The Kaufman Brief Intelligence Test (K-BIT) was used to assess IQ. Results: 7,6 % of the study population showed malnutrition, of which 63,9 % were below average in IQ. The statistical association test used was chi-square, with p=0,856. Conclusions: There was no statistically significant association between malnutrition and below average IQ.