%0 Journal Article %A Mansukoski, Liina %A Johnson, Will %A Brooke-Wavell, Katherine %A Galvez-Sobral, J Andres %A Furlán, Luis %A Cole, Tim J %A Bogin, Barry %D 2019 %T Four decades of socio-economic inequality and secular change in the physical growth of Guatemalans %U https://repository.lboro.ac.uk/articles/journal_contribution/Four_decades_of_socio-economic_inequality_and_secular_change_in_the_physical_growth_of_Guatemalans/11338604 %2 https://repository.lboro.ac.uk/ndownloader/files/22898780 %K Dual burden %K Growth inequalities %K Pubertal timing %K Super-Imposition by Translationand Rotation (SITAR) %K Nutrition & Dietetics %K Medical and Health Sciences %X OBJECTIVE: To investigate changes in socio-economic inequalities in growth in height, weight, BMI and grip strength in children born during 1955-1993 in Guatemala, a period of marked socio-economic-political change. DESIGN: We modelled longitudinal data on height, weight, BMI and hand grip strength using Super-Imposition by Translation and Rotation (SITAR). Internal Z-scores summarising growth size, timing and intensity (peak growth velocity, e.g. cm/year) were created to investigate inequalities by socio-economic position (SEP; measured by school attended). Interactions of SEP with date of birth were investigated to capture secular changes in inequalities. SETTING: Urban and peri-urban schools in the region of Guatemala City, Guatemala. PARTICIPANTS: Participants were 40 484 children and adolescents aged 3-19 years of Ladino and Maya ancestry (nobservations 157 067). RESULTS: The difference in height (SITAR size) between lowest and highest SEP decreased from -2·0 (95 % CI -2·2, -1·9) sd to -1·4 (95 % CI -1·5, -1·3) sd in males, and from -2·0 (95 % CI -2·1, -1·9) sd to -1·2 (95 % CI -1·3, -1·2) sd in females over the study period. Inequalities also reduced for weight, BMI and grip strength, due to greater secular increases in lowest-SEP groups. The puberty period was earlier and shorter in higher-SEP individuals (earlier SITAR timing and higher SITAR intensity). All SEP groups showed increases in BMI intensity over time. CONCLUSIONS: Inequality narrowed between the 1960s and 1990s. The lowest-SEP groups were still >1 sd shorter than the highest. Risks remain for reduced human capital and poorer population health for urban Guatemalans. %I Loughborough University