Abstract:
Nutrients are critical for optimal brain development, and good nutritional status is associated with cognitive development and improvement. The relationship between micronutrients intake and cognition in Ghanaian school-aged children has not been studied. The study investigated dietary intakes of micronutrients and cognition test performance of school-aged children. A cross-sectional study was undertaken among 438 school children, aged 9-13 years from ten randomly selected basic schools in Kumasi, Ghana. Socio-demographic data were obtained from a structured questionnaire. Dietary intakes of iron, zinc, vitamin B6, folate, vitamin B12, and vitamin A were determined from repeated 24-hr dietary recall data from 351 children, while cognition test was performed using a Raven\'s Coloured Progressive Matrices (RCPM), a 36-question test. Among 351 children, 156 (44.4%) had inadequate zinc intake, whereas 96 (27.4%) had inadequate iron intake. More than 1 in 2 children had inadequate vitamin A intake while 55.8% and 53.0% had inadequate vitamin B12 and folate intakes, respectively. More school-aged boys (66.3%) than girls (46.8%) had inadequate vitamin B12 intake (χ 2 = 13.393, p < .001), while for iron, folate, vitamin B6, zinc, and vitamin A, the differences were not significant. Mean RCPM test score differed significantly between school type (p < .001), but did not differ between the different ages, and between children with adequate and inadequate iron, zinc, vitamin B12, vitamin B6, and vitamin A intakes, except for folate intake (p = .050). Weak positive significant associations were observed between RCPM test score and zinc and folate intakes (p = .050). Dietary micronutrient intakes were inadequate in majority of these children, which put them at risk of weakened immune system and poor health, but did not show significant associations with RCPM performance. Further studies using other forms of cognition tests may help confirm our findings, and provide the impetus for the necessary interventions.
摘要:
营养素是大脑最佳发育的关键,良好的营养状况与认知发展和改善有关。加纳学龄儿童的微量营养素摄入与认知之间的关系尚未研究。该研究调查了学龄儿童的膳食微量营养素摄入量和认知测试表现。对438名学童进行了横断面研究,9-13岁,来自库马西10所随机选择的基础学校,加纳。社会人口统计数据来自结构化问卷。饮食中的铁摄入量,锌,维生素B6,叶酸,维生素B12和维生素A是从351名儿童的重复24小时饮食回忆数据中确定的,当使用Raven的彩色渐进矩阵(RCPM)进行认知测试时,36题测试。在351名儿童中,156(44.4%)锌摄入量不足,而96(27.4%)的铁摄入量不足。超过1/2的儿童维生素A摄入量不足,而55.8%和53.0%的儿童维生素B12和叶酸摄入量不足,分别。学龄男孩(66.3%)多于女孩(46.8%)维生素B12摄入不足(χ2=13.393,p<.001),而对于铁,叶酸,维生素B6,锌,和维生素A,差异不显著。学校类型之间的平均RCPM测试得分差异显著(p<.001),但不同年龄之间没有区别,在铁充足和不足的儿童之间,锌,维生素B12,维生素B6和维生素A摄入量,除了叶酸摄入量(p=0.050)。在RCPM测试评分与锌和叶酸摄入量之间观察到弱正相关(p=.050)。大多数这些儿童的膳食微量营养素摄入量不足,这使他们面临免疫系统减弱和健康状况不佳的风险,但与RCPM表现没有显著关联。使用其他形式的认知测试的进一步研究可能有助于证实我们的发现,并为必要的干预提供动力。