Obesity may be masking other health problems such as height deficit, or stunting. Stunting may reflect the cumulative effect of chronic malnutrition especially in underserved immigrant communities. Exploratory analysis of a sample of children 2-19 years old from the 2007-2008 NHANES was used to assess the relationship between chronic malnutrition and overweight/obesity in Hispanic children. Overall, overweight/obesity prevalence was nearly 1 in 3 children and stunting prevalence was 3.1%. The prevalence of stunting varied significantly across race/ethnicity, with prevalence among Hispanics of 6.6%. Prevalence of stunting varied significantly by socio-economic characteristics within the Hispanic population. Our exploratory study showed differences in the prevalence of stunting across racial/ethnic groups and highlighted that overweight/obese Hispanic children have a higher prevalence of stunting compared with Non-Hispanic White overweight/obese children. More studies are needed to better understand the phenomenon and the implications for health inequities. © 2011 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.

US Hispanic children Chronic malnutrition NHANES Childhood obesity

health disparity Health Status Disparities human Overweight obesity chronic disease ethnology Hispanic Americans United States Young Adult Humans Hispanic Adolescent male preschool child female Child, Preschool Article nutrition adult Nutrition Surveys malnutrition Child