American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol 7, 166-174, Copyright © 1959 by The American Society for Clinical Nutrition, Inc.

Relation of Age and Body Weight to the Frequency of Local Tissue Changes Suggestive of Malnutrition

The Five-Year Experience of a District Health Center Nutrition Clinic in New York City

¹ From the Department of Environmental Medicine and Community Health, State University College of Medicine at New York City, and the Red Hook-Gowanus Nutrition Clinic, Bureau of Nutrition, Department of Health, New York City

The prevalence of twelve selective qualitative tissue changes commonly associated with malnutrition was determined in 2,729 patients examined over a five-year period in a New York City Health Department nutrition clinic. Observations in a subgroup of 1,497 (54.9 per cent) white females were analyzed separately to provide impressions concerning apparent effects of age and relative body weight, independent of factors of sex and race.

The frequency of tissue changes appeared significantly related to age and, to a lesser extent, to relative body weight. Individual tissue changes showed significant differences from the frequency pattern for all tissue changes. In general, the number of total lesions increased with age in all weight groups, although under-weights exhibited a peak frequency at 15-19 years of age. The influence of relative body weight seemed greatest in respect to tissue changes least affected by age.