Examining the gender gap in nutrition

An example from rural Mexico

Bibliographic Data

ID4597902
AuthorsJeffrey R Backstrand (New York University), Lindsay H Allen (0000-0002-8729-5213, University of California, Davis), Gretel H Pelto (University of Connecticut), Adolfo Chávez (Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Médicas y Nutrición Salvador Zubirán)
Year1997
Volume44
Issue11
Pages1751-1759
Publication date1997-06-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueSocial Science & Medicine (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0277-9536 • E-ISSN: 1873-5347
PublisherElsevier BV (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1016/s0277-9536(96)00376-0
PMID9178417
OpenAlexW2062724056
LanguageEN
Citations received7
References cited19

Gender differences in nutrient and food intake were examined in Mexican Nutrition CRSP (Collaborative Research Support Program) infants (N = 75), preschoolers (N = 80), and school children (N = 91). No significant gender differences in dietary quality or quantity were seen for infants and preschoolers. For school children, the contribution of various foods to total energy intake (dietary quality) was also quite similar for girls and boys. Equity in dietary quality remained even under conditions of economic and demographic stress. Nevertheless, school girls consumed significantly less energy per day than boys (-300 kcal/d or 1.3 mJ/d), and less of all micronutrients examined. Gender differences in estimated basal metabolic rates of school children were slight (-20 kcal/d), and body composition and size were similar. When energy intakes were expressed as a percent of estimated requirement (calculated from age, sex and weight using WHO/FAO/UNU equations), intakes were adequate and not significantly different between girls (mean = 111%) and boys (mean = 113%). Playground observations showed girls to be less active than boys, which may reflect both cultural and biological influences. Apparently due to this lower activity, school girls consumed less energy, and may have been at much higher risk than boys of micronutrient deficiency. The lower food intakes of girls did not appear to be due to purposeful dietary discrimination, but rather to culturally patterned sex roles involving lower activity

Environmental health · Micronutrient · Child Nutrition and Water Access · Demography · Food Security and Health in Diverse Populations · Medicine · Obesity, Physical Activity, Diet · Psychology