Anthropometric status of 5–13-year-old children attending urban and rural primary schools in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

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Background: The United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 2 aims to end hunger and all forms of malnutrition by 2030. There is a high prevalence of malnutrition among school-age children in South Africa. This article seeks to determine the anthropometric status of learners between 5 and 13 years across quintile 1-5 primary schools in the iLembe district in KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study. A calibrated electronic SECA scale and stadiometer was used to assess the weight and height of the participants, respectively. Data was analyzed using the World Health Organization Anthro Plus software, version 1.0.4. Correlations were conducted using SPSS® version 31. Results: Stunting was prevalent in all three schools. Among the 5-9-year-old group, low height for age was observed in 65.9% of boys and 7.1% of girls in school 1 (quintile 3). With all the schools, age groups and genders combined, the overall prevalence of overweight was 24.6%, with 12.0% of the participants being obese and 3.8% being severely obese. Conclusion: Findings showed a double burden of malnutrition among primary school children in KwaZulu-Natal irrespective of school quintile, therefore indicating a necessity to establish a healthy school food environment that improves the availability of healthy foods, and encourages physical activity to enhance child health outcomes.

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