Childhood feeding practices and their effects on nutrition in a rural area of The Gambia

We have studied the nutritional status of 118 children of the Serahuli tribe aged 0-5 years from Badjakunda, a village in North Bank, Upper River Division (URD) of The Gambia. Throughout the 9 month study period malnutrition was identified in a larger proportion of children than in similar recent studies elsewhere in The Gambia. We have found a relationship in villages in North Bank URD between the percentage of Serahulis in the population and the percentage of children with malnutrition. Serahulis in Badjakunda generally do not introduce weaning foods until the child is aged 1 year, while Mandinkas in the same area usually start such foods before their children are 6 months old. Children aged between 6 months and 2 years were at particular risk of malnutrition, this may be attributable to the feeding practices of Serahulis.