Kwashiorkor and mental development

Abstract

Nineteen children successfully treated for kwashiorkor were followed up to see the effect of early malnutrition on growth and mental functions. These children were compared with appropriately matched controls selected from the same locality and the school from which the experimental children were derived. These controls were matched for age, sex, religion, caste, socioeconomic status, family size, birth order, and educational level of the parents and the subjects. Suitable intelligence tests and sensory development tests were constructed and these tests were applied to both the experimental and control groups of children. In addition to these tests, anthropometric measurements were also taken on all children. The salient features of the study are: a) There was a significant difference between the performance of the control and the experimental subjects with regard to the intelligence tests. This difference was particularly marked in the younger age group (8-9 years) and tended to diminish in the older age group (10-11 years). b) Intersensory organization was poorer in the experimental subjects than in the control subjects. The performance in the intersensory tests was markedly poorer in the younger age group and tended to improve in the older age group (10-11 years). c) The retardation was noticeable mainly with regard to perceptual and abstract abilities.