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There are few recent reports on the prevalence and risk factors of stunting and thinness among schoolchildren in Latin America.

To determine the prevalence and sociodemographic correlates of stunting and thinness among school-age children in Bogotá, Colombia, and to examine whether these nutritional indices are associated with the risk of respiratory and diarrheal morbidity symptoms, visits to the doctor, and school absenteeism during the school year in a prospective study.

We obtained information on anthropometric and maternal sociodemographic characteristics of 3,100 children 5 to 12 years of age who attended public primary schools in 2006 and who came from low- and middle-income households. Data on the incidence of common gastrointestinal and respiratory symptoms were collected prospectively on morbidity diaries throughout the year.

The prevalence rates of …