Some Anthropometric and Sociodemographic Parameters of School Age Respondents (10-20) Years in Garun Mallam, Kano State, Nigeria

ABSTRACT Background: Anthropometric characteristics vary from one ethnic group to another. The study was carried out to assess the anthropometric and sociodemographic characteristics of School-aged children and adolescents (10-20 years of age) in Garun Mallam Local Government Area, Kano State. Methodology: Four hundred subjects made up of 299 males and 101 females were recruited for this research. The anthropometric variables measured were height, weight, body mass index, head and neck circumferences, hand length, hand breadth, foot length, and foot breadth as well as some sociodemographic characteristics. All measurements were taken according to standard protocols. One-way Analysis of variance was used for the comparison of the parametric data among the four groups of independent categories and the Kruskal Wallis test was used for non-parametric data among two groups of independent categories. Pearson correlation was used to test for the correlation of all the measured anthropometry parameters. Data were analyzed using SPSS Version 17 and P<0.05. Results: Sexual dimorphism in the anthropometric variables such as height, weight, hand anthropometry, and foot anthropometry. There was no significant difference observed between the Igbos and Yoruba in both sexes (p>0.05). Hausas were relatively shorter in both sexes and all the measured anthropometry parameters had a strong positive correlation with each other. Conclusion: The study has documented some of the anthropometric parameters of School children and sociodemographic characteristics of the parents of children and adolescents of Garun Mallam Local Government of Kano State which can serve as baseline data.