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The influence of high altitude on the anticipated childhood growth Taif city - Saudi Arabia 2018 :a cross sectional study

Mohammed Abdullah Alzhrani, Ghasham Salem Almarzoqi, Saif Abdullah Alzahrani, Anood Qalil Althubaiti, Asma Aish Altalhi, Abdullah Hussain Alhabashi, Hisham Abdulrahman Alsuwat

Optimal child growth is a crucial goal that should be pursued to guarantee a healthy life for the individuals in a population with a good quality of life. For this purpose, any risk factors that may disturb or affect the normal growth pattern should be recognized. Living at a high altitude is suggested to be one of these factors. In this study, we aimed to explore if there is a relationship between living in high altitude cities like "Taif' and children's growth. Our population was randomly selected from children whose ages range from 5 to 18 years old and who live in "Taif" city. A total of 277 children were included in this study. Information about their anthropometric measurements were collected and compared to the Saudi national growth standard. Results showed that both weight and height of boys were significantly higher than the Saudi national growth standard. And for girls, the weight was significantly higher while the height did not differ significantly from the Saudi national growth standard. These findings do not support the hypothesis that living in high altitude cities like "Taif" can affect child's growth negatively in terms of height and weight.