Newborn body composition and its relationship to linear growth

Abstract

Anthropometric measurements were made on 4,952 newborns from a Peruvian urban population. Newborns characterized by high subcutaneous fat and high muscle had significantly greater birth weights and recumbent lengths when compared to their counterparts with low subcutaneous fat and muscle. Similarly, newborns characterized by high muscle and low fat had significantly greater birth weights and recumbent lengths than newborns characterized by low muscle and high fat. It is postulated that an increase in newborn protein and calorie reserves results in a greater increase in birth weight and recumbent length than an increase in calorie reserves alone. Evaluations of maternal anthropometric characteristics indicate that variations in birth weight and recumbent length of the newborn are affected more by maternal nutritional status than by maternal stature.