Secular change in muscular strength of indigenous rural youth 6-17 years in Oaxaca, southern Mexico: 1968-2000.

Objective: The study compared the grip strength of indigenous school youth 6-17 years of age in Oaxaca, southern Mexico, who were surveyed in 1968, 1978 and 2000.

Methods: Grip strength (Smedley/Stoelting) was measured to 0.5 kg in 1280 children and adolescent, 621 males and 659 females, in the three surveys.

Physical activity in youth from a subsistence agriculture community in the Valley of Oaxaca, southern Mexico.

Observations of activities of contemporary subsistence agricultural communities may provide insights into the lifestyle of youth of 2 to 3 generations ago. The purpose of this study was to document age- and sex-associated variation in household activities and daily steps walking to school of youth 9-17 years in an indigenous subsistence agricultural community in Oaxaca, southern Mexico. Activities during leisure were also considered.

Overweight and obesity in a rural Amerindian population in Oaxaca, Southern Mexico, 1968-2000.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate secular change in the prevalence of overweight and obesity in a rural Zapotec Indian community in southern Mexico between 1968 and 2000. Cross-sectional surveys of children 6-13 years, adolescents 13-17 years, and adults 19 years of age and older resident in a rural community in Oaxaca were conducted in 1968/1971, 1978, and 2000. Individuals present in the 1968, 1978, and 2000 surveys provided a small longitudinal component.

Craniofacial dimensions in children in rural Oaxaca, southern Mexico: secular change, 1968-2000.

The objective of this investigation was to analyze the underlying cause(s) of secular changes in craniofacial dimensions among indigenous children in an isolated community in Oaxaca, southern Mexico, between 1968-2000. Subjects were schoolchildren resident in a rural, agrarian, Zapotec-speaking community in the Valley of Oaxaca, previously characterized as mildly-to-moderately undernourished with growth-stunting in 1968 and 1978. In 2000, children had experienced a secular increase in height compared with two prior growth surveys.

Secular change in age at menarche in rural Oaxaca, southern Mexico: 1968--2000.

Objective: To evaluate secular change in the age at menarche between 1978 and 2000 in residents of a rural Zapotec-speaking community in Oaxaca, southern Mexico, using status quo and retrospective methods.

Materials And Methods: Status quo menarcheal status of girls 9-18 years of age in 1978 (n= 101) and 2000 (n=238) and retrospective ages at menarche of adult women 19+ years of age in 1978 (n = 228) and 2000 (n = 246) were obtained via interview. Probit analysis was used to estimate median ages at menarche and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for the status quo data.

Secular change in height, sitting height and leg length in rural Oaxaca, southern Mexico: 1968-2000.

Objective: To evaluate secular changes in height, sitting height and estimated leg length between 1968 and 2000 in residents in a rural Zapotec-speaking community in Oaxaca, southern Mexico.

Materials And Methods: Height and sitting height were measured in school children 6-13 years (1968; 1978, 2000), in adolescents 13-17 years (1978, 2002) and adults 19-29 years (1978, 2000). Leg length was estimated as height minus sitting height.

Urban-rural contrasts in the growth status of school children in Oaxaca, Mexico.

Objectives: The growth status of school children resident in an urban colonia and in a rural indigenous community in Oaxaca, southern Mexico, was considered in the context of two objectives, current status and the magnitude of urban-rural differences over a span of about 30 years. Both communities were initially surveyed in 1968 and 1972.

Materials And Methods: Height, body mass, segment lengths, skeletal breadths, limb circumferences, and subcutaneous fatness were taken on 361 rural (177 boys, 184 girls) and 339 urban (173 boys, 166 girls) school children, aged 6-13 years.

Urban-rural contrasts in the physical fitness of school children in Oaxaca, Mexico.

The physical fitness of school children resident in an urban colonia and in a rural indigenous community in Oaxaca, southern Mexico, was compared. Two measures of performance-related fitness (standing long jump, 35-yard dash [32 m]) and four measures of health-related fitness (grip strength, sit and reach, timed sit-ups, distance run) were taken on 355 rural (175 boys, 184 girls) and 324 urban (163 boys, 161 girls) school children, 6-13 years of age. Urban children were significantly taller and heavier than rural children.