Factors associated with nutritional status in infants attending public daycare centers in the municipality of Recife, PE, Brazil.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the nutritional status of infants attending daycare centers in the Municipality of Recife and to verify its association with potential determinant factors. METHODS This is a cross sectional study conducted with 321 infants in the age group of 6 to 30 months from August to October 2004. The nutritional status was assessed through length-for-age, weight-for-age, weight-for-length and body mass index-for-age using as reference pattern that of the World Health Organization. Multivariable linear regression analysis assessed the effect of maternal socioeconomic and demographical indicators, and child related variables on infant length-for-age. RESULTS The percentages of malnutrition (Z score < -2) were found in 13.4%, 2.8%, 0.6% and 0.6% for length-for-age, weight-for-age, weight-for-length and body mass index-for-age, respectively. The final model of the linear multivariable regression analysis showed that the socioeconomic (type of roof and water supply) and child biological conditions (birthweight, age and hemoglobin concentration) were the variables that significantly influenced the variation of length-for-age, explaining 3.8% and 12.8%, respectively. CONCLUSION Among the studied variables, child biological factors had a higher influence in the variation of length-for-age than the socioeconomic ones.