Growth advantage for children in cities is diminishing, ICMR study

In the last few decades, urban centres that used to provide a lot of scope and advantage for children to grow and flourish physically, when compared to their counterparts in rural areas, has gone down steadily since 1990

Hyderabad: The appeal of the cities, especially their positive role in the growth and development of children and adolescents between 5 years and 19 years, is diminishing in India, a multi-institutional countrywide study by Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), which included Hyderabad-based National Institute of Nutrition (NIN), said.

In the last few decades, urban centres that used to provide a lot of scope and advantage for children to grow and flourish physically, when compared to their counterparts in rural areas, has gone down steadily since 1990, the ICMR study published in Nature journal this March, indicated.

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There was a time in 1990s when children and adolescents, who lived in cities, were taller and had better Body Mass Index (BMI) than their counterparts in rural areas, the study titled ‘Diminishing benefits of urban living for children and adolescents’ growth and development’, said.

Such growth benefits and opportunities for overall development of children in urban centres drove parents to shift to cities from rural areas. However, analysis of growth and overall development data from between 1990 and 2020 has now indicated declining benefits of urban living for growth and development in the country.

“Researchers found that living in urban areas may not provide as many benefits for children’s growth and development as previously believed,” the study said.

By 2020, the urban height advantage of school going children has become smaller. In emerging economies like India, the height of children in rural areas converged to those in cities. In fact, successive cohorts of children in rural areas outpaced their urban counterparts in becoming taller.

“Understanding these nuances can help use create more supportive environments for our future generations,” the ICMR researchers said.