Skinfold Thicknesses at Seven Sites in Rural Guatemalan Ladino Children Birth Through Seven Years of Age

Age changes and sex differences for seven skinfolds are reported for a mixed longitudinal sample of 1,119 rural Guatemalan Ladino children birth through seven years of age. For this mixed longitudinal sample, there are approximately 5,030 observations for the triceps and subscapular skinfolds and approximately 2,055 observations for the biceps, midaxillary, anterior thigh, lateral thigh and calf skinfolds. All seven skinfolds increase sharply in thickness between birth and 3-6 months of age, followed by a decrease to 18-21 months. The increase in fat thickness during the first six months is less than that reported for well nourished children. After 21-24 months of age, skinfold thicknesses in five of the seven sites increase, while the re­maining two level off. Sex differences in skinfold thicknesses are variable between birth and four years, being more apparent in the two thigh skinfolds. After four years of age, girls have thicker skinfolds. Rural Guatemalan children have smaller skinfolds than samples of well nourished children. Factors that may be related to these observations are discussed