ABSTRACT
Objectives: A community based cross-sectional study was undertaken to determine the prevalence of undernutrition using body mass index (BMI) among 7-18 year old Santal children and adolescents of Purulia District, West Bengal, India. Methods: A total of 421 (217 boys) children from ten villages was measured. Age and sex specific new international BMI (kg/m2) based cut off values were used to evaluate nutritional status. Results: Although girls had greater mean weight and BMI than boys, these sex differences were not statistically significant. Moreover, boys and girls had almost similar mean heights. Although more girls (44.6%) than boys (38.3%) were undernourished, this sex difference was also not significant. The overall prevalence of thinness (41.3%) was very high among the studied Santal children and adolescents. Conclusion: The children and adolescents of both sexes were observed to be under serious and critical nutritional stress.