Give it a look...that's usIn this photo, some of the children we assessed. The girl on the left has a BioScan electrode stuck on her face. These electrodes were a constant source of amusement for the children.
Sunday 27 February 2011
Our project is on The Wenner-Gren Foundation website
Give it a look...that's usIn this photo, some of the children we assessed. The girl on the left has a BioScan electrode stuck on her face. These electrodes were a constant source of amusement for the children.
Friday 18 February 2011
Fieldwork in 2010
Just added two new pages. One with details of our fieldwork during 2010
http://bemicelu.blogspot.com/p/fieldwork-2010.html
and other with information about the training sessions we run at CINVESTAV for 4 days. However, for some reason, I was unable to upload photos on this one. I will try again later. Enjoy!
http://bemicelu.blogspot.com/p/fieldwork-2010.html
and other with information about the training sessions we run at CINVESTAV for 4 days. However, for some reason, I was unable to upload photos on this one. I will try again later. Enjoy!
Tuesday 15 February 2011
Short stature of the Maya
Hannah took this photo on April 2010. It's another example of how short Maya women are...
There was this idea, for a while, that Maya were genetically short and that they were basically "fine" and that's "just the way they are"...This is not true.
The Maya have been suffering for a long time. The Maya carry a legacy of poverty, social-political-economical pressure and poor health that is reflected in their physical growth, mainly in their height, as well as in many other health aspects.
Our research with Maya migrants in Florida (Bogin et al 2002) has shown that Maya children who migrated to the USA are, on average, 11cm taller than their counterparts in Guatemala. These results show the powerful effects of the environment on physical growth. Read more here.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12400036
There was this idea, for a while, that Maya were genetically short and that they were basically "fine" and that's "just the way they are"...This is not true.
The Maya have been suffering for a long time. The Maya carry a legacy of poverty, social-political-economical pressure and poor health that is reflected in their physical growth, mainly in their height, as well as in many other health aspects.
Our research with Maya migrants in Florida (Bogin et al 2002) has shown that Maya children who migrated to the USA are, on average, 11cm taller than their counterparts in Guatemala. These results show the powerful effects of the environment on physical growth. Read more here.
Bogin B, Smith P, Orden AB, Varela Silva MI, Loucky J. (2002) Rapid change in height and body proportions of Maya American children.Am J Hum Biol. 2002 Nov-Dec;14(6):753-61.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12400036
(copyright Hannah Wilson, 2010)
Monday 14 February 2011
A new page has been created
A new page has been created. Check it out "Our Research Team"...with nice photos. More soon.
Sunday 13 February 2011
The Biosocial Society
Ines is also the Chair of the Biosocial Society.
For more information go to http://www.biosocsoc.org/
or follow us on Facebook www.facebook.com/biosocsoc
For more information go to http://www.biosocsoc.org/
or follow us on Facebook www.facebook.com/biosocsoc
Low birthweight - negative effects that stick for a long time
In 2007 Hugo took this picture in Merida. The boy in the red shorts is older than his brother in grey shorts. However, he is shorter. He was born with low birthweight.
Some of our data published in 2009: Height, Weight, BMI and Birthweight of the children and Mother's height and age at pregnancy
In 2006 Hugo collected data in the southern part of Merida, among a group of Maya. He assessed 206 children and their mothers. The basic anthropometric data of the children, mother's height and mother's age at pregnancy are as follow:
There are high levels of childhood stunting (chronic malnutrition) - 21.8%
There are high levels of childhood overweight - 33%
There are very high levels of maternal stunting - 70.9%
These findings classify the Maya in the Southern part of Merida as a group suffering from nutrition dual-burden (coexistence of chronic malnutrition and overweight/obesity.
For research purposes please cite:
There are high levels of childhood overweight - 33%
There are very high levels of maternal stunting - 70.9%
These findings classify the Maya in the Southern part of Merida as a group suffering from nutrition dual-burden (coexistence of chronic malnutrition and overweight/obesity.
For research purposes please cite:
Varela-Silva MI, Azcorra H, Dickinson F, Bogin B, Frisancho AR.
Am J Hum Biol. 2009 Sep-Oct;21(5):657-63.PMID: 19214997 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
Thursday 3 February 2011
More about height
Read more here
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19214997
Varela-Silva MI, Azcorra H, Dickinson F, Bogin B, Frisancho AR (2009). Influence of maternal stature, pregnancy age, and infant birth weight on growth during childhood in Yucatan, Mexico: a test of the intergenerational effects hypothesis. American Journal of Human Biology 21(5):657-63.
Stature of Maya groups in Guatemala, Mexico and the USA
We have published several papers focusing on the height of Maya groups in Guatemala, Mexico and in the USA. Maya groups in Mexico and in Guatemala are very short due to very hard living conditions, poor health and socioeconomic and political repression. For many years the Maya were considered the "Pygmies" of Latin-America and their short stature was assumed to be a genetic trait.
However, when our group measured a group of Maya who have migrated to Indiantown, Florida we found a very deep increase in stature - about 11cm in less then 10 years. Better living conditions, more education, basic health, vaccination, clean drinking water and a safer environment in general result in dramatic changes in height. On the other hand, a great percnetage of Maya in the USA are overweight or obese and this brings about a cascade of health problems that need to be addressed.
Check out our papers:
However, when our group measured a group of Maya who have migrated to Indiantown, Florida we found a very deep increase in stature - about 11cm in less then 10 years. Better living conditions, more education, basic health, vaccination, clean drinking water and a safer environment in general result in dramatic changes in height. On the other hand, a great percnetage of Maya in the USA are overweight or obese and this brings about a cascade of health problems that need to be addressed.
Check out our papers:
Our research team
We are a group of Human Biologists, Anthropologists, Human Ecologists and Nutritionists who study child growth and health in several parts of the world.
The BEMICELU project has been running in Mérida, Mexico since January 2010. We aim to identify several components of early life malnutrition that lead to health impairments (especially overweight/obesity) in adulthood.
The project leader is Dr Inês Varela-Silva (http://myprofile.cos.com/inesvs)
The other members are:
Prof Barry Bogin (http://www.lboro.ac.uk/departments/ssehs/staff/academic/barry-bogin.html)
Dr. Federico Dickinson (http://www.mda.cinvestav.mx/personal_eco/dickinson.htm)
Ms Hannah Wilson (http://www.lboro.ac.uk/departments/ssehs/staff/research-students/hannah-wilson.html)
Mr Hugo Azcorra (http://www.lboro.ac.uk/departments/ssehs/staff/research-students/hugo-azcorra.html).
We are based at the Centre for Global Health and Human Development - Loughborough University (http://www.lboro.ac.uk/departments/ssehs/research/centres-institutes/global-health/index.html) and at the Centre for Human Ecology - CINVESTAV Mérida, Mexico (http://www.mda.cinvestav.mx/eh02.htm).
This project has been financed by the Wenner-Gren Foundation (http://www.wennergren.org/) and by the Santander Bank.
Some photos of the fieldwork (February-July 2010)
The BEMICELU project has been running in Mérida, Mexico since January 2010. We aim to identify several components of early life malnutrition that lead to health impairments (especially overweight/obesity) in adulthood.
The project leader is Dr Inês Varela-Silva (http://myprofile.cos.com/inesvs)
The other members are:
Prof Barry Bogin (http://www.lboro.ac.uk/departments/ssehs/staff/academic/barry-bogin.html)
Dr. Federico Dickinson (http://www.mda.cinvestav.mx/personal_eco/dickinson.htm)
Ms Hannah Wilson (http://www.lboro.ac.uk/departments/ssehs/staff/research-students/hannah-wilson.html)
Mr Hugo Azcorra (http://www.lboro.ac.uk/departments/ssehs/staff/research-students/hugo-azcorra.html).
We are based at the Centre for Global Health and Human Development - Loughborough University (http://www.lboro.ac.uk/departments/ssehs/research/centres-institutes/global-health/index.html) and at the Centre for Human Ecology - CINVESTAV Mérida, Mexico (http://www.mda.cinvestav.mx/eh02.htm).
This project has been financed by the Wenner-Gren Foundation (http://www.wennergren.org/) and by the Santander Bank.
Some photos of the fieldwork (February-July 2010)
Inês and three little girls
Inês, Hannah and four of our participants
During the Spring Festival in one of the schools. Beautiful
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