ABSTRACT
The anthropometric measurements of all children between 3-10 years of age (n=1427) attending eight private primary schools in Freetown were recorded together with accurate dates of birth. This was done to compare the anthropometric measurements of well nourished children in Sierra Leone to the NCHS references. The results of weight/age; height/age and weight/height showed no statistically significant variation from the NCHS values for children of the same age and sex. The sample population adequately represented the major and some minor ethnical groups of Sierra Leonean population. It is concluded therefore that in those populations in Sierra Leone where the children do vary significantly from the NCHS; this difference in their growth potential may be explained by environmental factors rather than ethnic differences from American children
