Grades of undernutrition and socioeconomic status influence cognitive development in school children of Kolkata

Cognitive development of children is influenced by different environmental factors like nutritional and socio‐economic status. The objectives of the present study were to determine the influence of grades of undernutrition and socio‐economic status (SES) on the cognitive development of school children of Kolkata. Five hundred sixty six (566) school children having 5–12 years of age were selected from different schools of Kolkata. The cognitive development was measured by the scores of Raven's colored progressive matrices (RCPM). The chronic and acute nutritional statuses were measured from height‐for‐age (HAZ) and weight‐for‐age (WAZ) Z scores respectively with reference to the values of WHO. SES was determined by updated Kuppuswamy scale. The prevalences of undernutrition in the observed children were 57.95% (according to HAZ) and 52.82% (according to WAZ). The age dependent growth curve of RCPM scores of the observed children remains in between the 10th and 25th centile of British children. The children belonging to superior and intellectual deficit IQ classes were 21.55 and 36.40%, respectively of the total subjects. Most of the subjects belong to lower middle (39.93%) and upper middle (36.40%) class of SES. RCPM scores of school children were gradually decreased with the grades of undernutrition and SES. RCPM scores were significantly correlated with HAZ, WAZ, SES, age, and sex (P < 0.001) and strongly associated with HAZ, SES, age, and sex (P < 0.001, P < 0.05). Present study indicates that cognitive development of school children of Kolkata is influenced by the grade of undernutrition and SES. Am J Phys Anthropol 156:274–285, 2015. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Are short normal children at a disadvantage? The Wessex growth study.

OBJECTIVE: To examine whether short stature through childhood represents a disadvantage at around 12 years. DESIGN: Longitudinal non-intervention study of the physical and psychological development of children recruited from the community in 1986-7 after entry into primary school at age 5-6 years; this is the second psychometric assessment made in 1994-5 after entry into secondary school at age 11-13 years. SETTING: Southampton and Winchester health districts. SUBJECTS: 106 short normal children (< 3rd centile for height when recruited) and 119 controls of average stature (10th-90th centile). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Psychometric measures of cognitive development, self concept development, behaviour, and locus of control. RESULTS: The short children did not differ significantly from the control children on measures of self esteem (19.4 v 20.2), self perception (104.2 v 102.4), parents'' perception (46.9 v 47.0), or behaviour (6.8 v 5.3). The short children achieved significantly lower scores on measures of intelligence quotient (IQ) (102.6 v 108.6; P < 0.005), reading attainment (44.3 v 47.9; P < 0.002), and basic number skills (40.2 v 43.5; P < 0.003) and displayed less internalisation of control (16.6 v 14.3; P < 0.001) and less satisfaction with their height (P < 0.0001). More short than control children, however, came from working class homes (P < 0.05). Social class was a better predictor than height of all measures except that of body satisfaction. Attainment scores were predicted by class and IQ together rather than by height. Height accounted for some of the variance in IQ and locus of control scores. CONCLUSIONS: These results provide only limited support for the hypothesis that short children are disadvantaged, at least up until 11-13 years old. Social class seems to have more influence than height on children''s psychological development.     

Development of Overweight in Children in Relation to Parental Weight and Socioeconomic Status

The purpose of the study was to test the hypothesis that socioeconomic status (SES) moderates the association between parental weight and changes in BMI from childhood to early adolescence. Participants included 428 twin children from 100 families with obese parents (“obese families”) and 114 sociodemographically matched families with normal‐weight parents (“lean families”) who were assessed in their homes (age = 4.4). Follow‐up study was conducted 7 years later (age = 11.2) on 346 children (81%). Complete data were available for 333 children. Family SES was indexed with maternal education. Children's weights and heights were measured to calculate BMI s.d. scores based on 1990 British norms. Overweight was defined as >91st BMI centile. In children with obese parents, BMI s.d. scores increased from 0.51 at age 4 to 1.06 at age 11. In children with lean parents, BMI s.d. scores decreased from 0.11 to 0.05. Prevalence of overweight remained stable from age 4 to 11 in children with lean parents (8% to 9%), but it more than doubled in children with obese parents (17% to 45%). There was a significant interaction between parental weight and family SES (P < 0.01), so that in children with lean parents there was no SES difference in the BMI status from age 4 to 11; however, in children with obese parents, the increase in adiposity was significantly greater in lower SES families. These results suggest that parental leanness confers significant protection against development of overweight in children regardless of family SES, while parental obesity is an adverse prognostic sign, especially in lower SES families.     

Biosocial correlates of stature in a British national cohort

Analyses of height variation using the 1970 UK national cohort study (12,508 children at age 10 and 5470 at age 16) found clear evidence that children of higher socioeconomic status (as measured by social class, crowding, tenure, type of accommodation, income and receipt of government financial assistance) were on average taller than children of lower socioeconomic status but there was little or no difference in average stature between children living in urban or rural areas. Significant differences in height remained for most of the variables after removing the effects of father's social class suggesting that reliance on social class per se to explain height variation is inadvisable.     

Understanding How Family Socioeconomic Status Mediates the Maternal Intelligence–Child Cognitive Outcomes Relationship: A Moderated Mediation Analysis

In a model of moderated mediation using matched data from the 1979 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth and the 1979 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, Children and Young Adults, I test (1) whether family socioeconomic status (SES) mediates the maternal intelligence-child cognitive outcomes relationship and (2) the extent to which this mediating impact is dependent on the level of maternal intelligence. Results reveal that the mediating impact of SES on the maternal intelligence–child cognitive outcomes relationship varies as a function of the level of maternal intelligence. The positive effect of higher SES on children's academic ability decreases as the cognitive ability of mothers increases, such that children in low IQ households benefit most from higher SES, while children in high IQ households benefit somewhat less.     

Standards of arm muscle by stature for the assessment of nutritional status of children

This study is based on a sample of 9,134 children ranging in age from 2 to 17 years from which the excessively lean and fat children by skinfold thickness were excluded. This sample was derived from the combined data sets of the first and second National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES I and II) of 1971-1974 and 1976-1980. Means and percentiles of upper arm muscle area were calculated for 3 cm increments in stature from 84 to 184 cm for boys and from 84 to 176 cm for girls. Based on means, Z-score units, and percentile ranges of upper arm muscle area by stature, five operational categories of nutritional status have been established. It is recommended that these standards and this classification system be used to supplement current standards of weight for age and weight for height in order to obtain a more complete assessment of body composition and nutritional status.     

Body composition and nutritional status of urban Guatemalan children of high and low socioeconomic class

The effects of socioeconomic differences on the nutritional status of two groups of urban living children are considered via an anthropometric assessment of body composition. The sample consists of 981 Guatemala City children, 7.00 to 13.99 years old, of high and low socioeconomic status (SES). High SES children have larger median values for triceps skinfold, subscapular skinfold, arm circumference, and estimated mid-arm muscle and fat areas than low SES children. Compared with children of a US reference sample, the high SES children generally have larger values for all variables and the low SES children have smaller values. However, the differences between the low SES children and the children of the other two samples are greater for arm fat area than for arm muscle area. The analysis suggests that low SES Guatemalan children suffer to a greater extent from chronic energy, rather than protein, undernutrition. A similar pattern of energy malnutrition has been observed for rural Guatemalan children. These combined data suggest that estimates of fat reserves of the arm provide a useful indication of nutritional status for Third-World children. Results from rural Costa Rican and Honduran studies have been taken to mean that muscle reserves are better than fat reserves as indicators of nutritional status in developing countries. But, those studies did not estimate cross-sectional muscle and fat areas and only considered the extremes of the population distribution for muscle and fat.     

Socioeconomic status during childhood and health status in adulthood: the Wrocław growth study

It has been widely observed that socioeconomic status (SES) is associated with frequency of cardiovascular disease. Both men and women of low socioeconomic position have increased risk of cardiovascular disease morbidity and premature death. In this study the relationship between SES in childhood, and health status at the age of 50 years was examined. Socioeconomic status in childhood was measured using objective (father's educational level and number of children in the family) and subjective (self-assessed SES in childhood declared in early adulthood) indicators. Data from the Wroclaw Growth Study were completed when subjects were 50 years old, and information concerning health status was added. The results indicated that the objective, universally used measures of SES in childhood such as father's educational level and size of family did not show any essential relationships with health outcomes in adulthood, both for men and women. By contrast, retrospective, self-assessed SES (as better, average or worse as compared with peers) in childhood was significantly associated with the appearance of cardiovascular disease among women aged 50 years. Women who at the beginning of their adult life declared better socioeconomic condition in childhood were significantly healthier at the age of 50 years (OR=3.43; p=0.02). Moreover, this appeared to be independent of BMI, SES and life-style in adulthood. For men, retrospective self-assessed SES showed no relation to health status at the age of 50 years. The gender differences in the relationships between self-assessed SES in childhood and health status in adulthood are explained by possible selective premature mortality among men from lower childhood SES and/or sex differences in cognitive abilities.     

The association between socioeconomic status and exposure to mobile telecommunication networks in children and adolescents

A potential association between socioeconomic status (SES) and self‐reported use of mobile phones has been investigated in a few studies. If measured exposure to mobile phone networks differs by SES in children, it has not yet been studied. Interview data of 1,481 children and 1,505 adolescents on participants' mobile phone use, socio‐demographic characteristics and potential confounders were taken from the German MobilEe‐study. Sociodemographic data was used to stratify participants into three “status groups” (low, middle, high). Using a personal dosimeter, we obtained an exposure profile over 24 h for each of the participants. Exposure levels during waking hours were expressed as mean percentage of the reference level. Children with a low SES were more likely to own a mobile phone (OR 2.1; 95% CI: 1.1–3.9) and also reported to use their mobile phone longer per day (OR 2.4; 95% CI: 1.1–5.4) than children with a high SES. For adolescents, self‐reported duration of mobile phone use per day was also higher with a low SES (OR: 3.4; 95% CI: 1.4–8.4) compared with a high SES. No association between SES and measured exposure to mobile telecommunication networks was seen for children or adolescents. Mobile phone use may differ between status groups with higher use among disadvantaged groups. However, this does not result in higher overall exposure to mobile telecommunication networks. Whether short duration of own mobile phone use or the small numbers of participants with a low SES are causal, have to be investigated in further studies. Bioelectromagnetics 31:20–27, 2010. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Immunology and growth faltering of Anga children,Papua New Guinea: Preliminary work

Nutrition–infection interactions among poor children of the less-developed world influence growth and development. However, the relative importance of each is difficult to determine, because the relationship is mediated by immunological status. In this analysis, relationships between immunological measures and anthropometry were sought among 41 Anga, Papua New Guinea children aged 0–7 years. These had elevated serum total leucocyte and leucocyte subset counts relative to western reference values. Although there was no correlation between anthropometric nutritional status and total leucocytes and leucocyte subsets for this group, the small group (n = 8) with very high total leucocyte count (greater than 15,000/mm²) had significantly lower mean Z score of stature for age (−3.78), and weight for stature (−1.35) than those with leucocyte counts lower than this cut-off (weight for stature Z score: −0.59; stature for age Z score: −2.68, respectively. Low stature-for-age Z score was associated with lower total lymphocyte count and increasing age, against a background of elevated lymphocyte levels relative to western reference values among the older children; low weight-for-stature Z score was associated with lower neutrophil count, against a background of normal neutrophil levels across all age groups. The pattern of weight and stature growth seen in the Anga may reflect extended nutritional deficits which result in stunting of a degree to which the most growth-compromised children die, leaving those above a threshold associated with high mortality alive. Thus, the anthropometric and immunological characteristics of the older children in this small sample may reflect the biology of survival under severe ecological conditions, where poor linear growth and elevated leucocyte status relative to normative values are characteristics of survivorship. Am J Phys Anthropol 106:515–520, 1998. © 1998 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Genetic and environmental effects on growth of children from a subsistence agricultural community in southern Mexico

Sibling correlations for size attained in height, weight, sitting height, estimated leg length, the triceps skinfold, arm circumference, and estimated midarm muscle circumference were compared in 6- through 13-year-old schoolchildren grouped by household socioeconomic status. The children were residents of a Zapotec-speaking, subsistence agricultural community in the Valley of Oaxaca in southern Mexico. Sibling pairs were classified as being from high and low socioeconomic status (SES) households, and sibling correlations were computed within each SES group controlling for environmental effects derived from a factor analysis of information on household demography and land and livestock holdings. Like-sex siblings from lower SES households have significantly different correlations in four instances. Correlations are higher for leg length in lower SES brothers and higher for sitting height and weight in lower SES sisters, while the correlation for sitting height is higher in upper SES brothers. The sibling correlation results are not entirely consistent with observations on growth status by SES, particularly if the power and similarity of a common environment is the only cause of higher sibling correlations. Reduced body size under poorer socioeconomic and presumably nutritional circumstances is apparent, but it is not possible in this analysis to distinguish whether genotypic (developmental) plasticity or genetic adaptation, or both, are involved.     

Family and Neighbourhood Socioeconomic Inequalities in Childhood Trajectories of BMI and Overweight: Longitudinal Study of Australian Children

Background

Socioeconomic inequalities in longitudinal patterning of childhood overweight could cause marked differentials in total burden by adulthood. This study aims to determine timing and strength of the association between socioeconomic status (SES) and children’s body mass index (BMI) in the pre- and primary school years, and to examine socioeconomic differences in overweight trajectories across childhood.

Methods

Participants were 4949 children from the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children. BMI was measured at four biennial waves starting at age 4–5 years in 2004. Developmental trajectories of childhood overweight were identified with latent class analyses. Composite variables of family and neighbourhood SES were used.

Results

Socioeconomic differences in mean BMI z-scores already present at age 4–5 more than doubled by age 10–11 years, reflecting decreasing mean BMI among advantaged rather than increasing means among disadvantaged children. Latent class analysis identified children with ‘stable normal weight’ (68%), and with ‘persistent’ (15%), ‘late-onset’ (14%), and ‘resolving’ overweight (3%). Risks of persistent and late-onset childhood overweight were highest among low SES families (e.g. most disadvantaged quintile: OR_persistent = 2.51, 95%CI: 1.83–3.43), and only partly explained by birth weight and parental overweight. Relationships with neighbourhood SES were weaker and attenuated fully on adjustment for family SES. No socioeconomic gradient was observed for resolving overweight.

Conclusions

Childhood has become the critical period when socioeconomic inequalities in overweight emerge and strengthen. Although targeting disadvantaged children with early overweight must be a top priority, the presence of childhood overweight even among less-disadvantaged families suggests only whole-society approaches will eliminate overweight-associated morbidity.     

The Complex Interaction between Home Environment,Socioeconomic Status,Maternal IQ and Early Child Neurocognitive Development: A Multivariate Analysis of Data Collected in a Newborn Cohort Study

BackgroundThe relative role of socioeconomic status (SES), home environment and maternal intelligence, as factors affecting child cognitive development in early childhood is still unclear. The aim of this study is to analyze the association of SES, home environment and maternal IQ with child neurodevelopment at 18 months.MethodsThe data were collected prospectively in the PHIME study, a newborn cohort study carried out in Italy between 2007 and 2010. Maternal nonverbal abilities (IQ) were evaluated using the Standard Progressive Matrices, a version of the Raven’s Progressive Matrices; a direct evaluation of the home environment was carried out with the AIRE instrument, designed using the HOME (Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment) model; the socioeconomic characteristics were evaluated using the SES index which takes into account parents occupation, type of employment, educational level, homeownership. The study outcome was child neurodevelopment evaluated at 18 months, with the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development Third Edition (BSID III). Linear regression analyses and mediation analyses were carried out to evaluate the association between the three exposures, and the scaled scores of the three main scales of BSID III (cognitive, language and motor scale), with adjustment for a wide range of potential explanatory variables.ResultsData from 502 mother-child pairs were analyzed. Mediation analysis showed a relationship between SES and maternal IQ, with a complete mediation effect of home environment in affecting cognitive and language domains. A direct significant effect of maternal IQ on the BSID III motor development scale and the mediation effect of home environment were found.ConclusionsOur results show that home environment was the variable with greater influence on neurodevelopment at 18 months. The observation of how parents and children interact in the home context is crucial to adequately evaluate early child development.     

Parental education and living environmental influence on physical development, nutritional habits as well as level of physical activity in Polish children and adolescents

The aim of this work was to evaluate the physical development and nutritional status, the nutrition habits as well as level of physical activity of boys and girls in relation to the socio-economic status of their families. The study was conducted on a group of 529 boys and 535 girls aged 7-16 years from Swietokrzyskie Province in Poland. Boys and girls from high SES families had the greatest body height, BMI, upper arm muscle area, as well as upper arm fat tissue area, while the lowest values of these features occurred among those studied coming from families of a low SES. The higher the family SES, the higher habitual frequency of consuming vegetables and fruit as well as fish. The diet of children coming from higher SES families was also linked with a higher total protein content as well as animal protein, all analysed minerals and some vitamins, but there were no significant differences of energetic value in daily food rations as well as fat content. The longer time spent on some sedentary activities was connected with a higher family SES. The girls coming from a high status families also declared a higher level of physical activity, whereas such relationship was not observed among boys. A more rational set of nutritional habits observed among children from a higher SES families can be the basic reason for their higher advancement in development. A shorter time devoted to sedentary activities is assumed to be the main cause of a smaller relative body mass and less obesity among girls and boys from low SES families.     

Anemia of Inflammation Is Related to Cognitive Impairment among Children in Leyte,The Philippines

Background

Many studies have addressed the relationship between iron deficiency anemia (IDA) and cognitive impairment, but none have evaluated the role of non-iron deficiency anemia (NIDA). One of the main causes of NIDA in developing countries is AI, largely due to infectious diseases, whereby iron is shunted away from bio-available forms to storage forms, making it less accessible for use by host tissues. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of NIDA, due largely to AI in this context, on cognitive function after adjustment for potential confounders.

Methodology

This cross-sectional study was conducted in Leyte, The Philippines among 322 children ages 7–18 years. Blood samples were collected and analyzed at the time of cognition testing. Three stool samples were collected and evaluated by the Kato Katz method for quantitative assessment for Schistosoma japonicum and geo-helminth infection. Socio-economic status (SES) was evaluated by survey. Linear regression models were used to quantify the adjusted relationship between performance in different cognitive domains and both IDA and NIDA.

Principal Findings

After adjusting for age, sex, SES and nutritional status, children in the NIDA had lower scores on the PNIT (P = <0.05) and the WRAML memory domain (P<0.05) compared to children in the non-anemic group. Children in the IDA had lower performance on the PNIT compared to the non-anemic group after controlling for potential confounders (P<0.05).

Conclusions

NIDA, predominantly due to AI in this context, was related to lower performance on two tests of cognitive function. This is likely due to decreased delivery of iron to host tissues in this context, including the CNS.     

哈萨克族学生体质发育状况的10年比较分析

报道新疆阿勒泰地区1995年2589名城镇7—18岁哈萨克族(哈族)中小学生身高、体重、胸围、坐高、肩宽、骨盆宽6项体质发育指标的调查结果。男女生体质发育指标随年龄增加而增长,各项指标的年均增长值皆为男生大于女生。与1985年比较,哈族学生的身高、体重、胸围皆有不同程度增长。哈族男女生的身高突增年龄仍分别为14岁和10岁,但是其身高增长却不伴有相应比例的坐高增长,女生部分年龄组的肩宽和男女生各年龄组的骨盆宽呈现负增长,提示哈族学生的体型与10年前相比已经开始有所改变。     

Nutritional influence on childhood development and genetic control of adolescent growth of Quechuas and Mestizos from the Peruvian Lowlands

The growth in height of 1,202 Quechua and Mestizo children aged 6 to 19 years of the province of Lamas in the Peruvian Eastern Lowlands was studied. As shown by evaluations of ABO, Rh systems, and skin reflectance measurements, the Quechuas are genetically different from the Mestizos. The heights of Quechuas and Mestizos were matched for nutritional status based on measurements of subcutaneous fat and body muscle. The study indicates that: (1) during childhood, Quechuas and Mestizos matched for the same nutritional status attain similar heights; (2) during adolescence (or after the age of 11 years), the Mestizos are significantly taller than the Quechuas of the same nutritional status; 3) during childhood, the relative difference in height between Quechuas and Mestizos matched for the same nutritional status is less than the difference between Quechuas (or Mestizos) of the same genetic composition characterized by good and poor nutritional status. These findings suggest that the influence of environmental factors, such as nutrition, have a greater influence in producing differences in body size during childhood than during adolescence. Conversely, the present findings support the hypothesis that the influence of genetic factors on body size are greater during adolescence than during childhood. However, comparison of adolescent samples of similar genetic composition (whether they be Quechuas or Mestizos), characterized by good and poor nutritional status, reveal large differences in height, suggesting that under conditions of malnutrition, the genetic control of growth is diminished.     

Somatic growth of a school-aged population from Mozambique: trend and biosocial meaning

A cross-sectional study of children and adolescents from Maputo, Mozambique, was carried out in order to (1) describe the current growth status of children and adolescents from Maputo, (2) evaluate the relative status of the growth and development of youth from Maputo compared to WHO international standards, (3) assess the relationship between socioeconomic status and growth and development, and (4) assess the impact that the civil war (1980-1992) had on the health status of children and adolescents living in Maputo. The sample is composed of 2,271 subjects (1,098 boys and 1,173 girls), age 6 to 17 years. Somatic measures included height, weight, and skinfold thicknesses from which nutritional indicators were calculated and plotted against WHO norms. Subjects were divided into three groups according to their socioeconomic status. Data from a cross-sectional study done in the same areas in 1992 was used to analyze the impact of war. Beginning at 11 years, Maputo students are always shorter and weigh less than the WHO standards. BMI in boys from 11 years and in girls from 12 years is somewhat lower than the WHO norms. A social gradient is evident, favoring those students with higher socioeconomic status. Height, weight, BMI, fat mass, and lean body mass are always higher in the 1999 sample than in the 1992 study. We conclude that (1) there is a substantial difference in height and weight values of Maputo children and adolescents compared to WHO standards; (2) there is a clear advantage of being of higher socioeconomic status; (3) socioeconomic status, hygiene, and sanitation are the main factors responsible for the greater values of the 1999 sample; and (4) differences between the stature of students with higher socioeconomic status and the WHO norms are almost irrelevant. This last aspect reveals the importance of socioeconomic factors in determining the growth process, implying its importance in facilitating the "expression" of the genotypes available in the population.     

Cognitive and adaptive functioning of children with infantile Pompe disease treated with enzyme replacement therapy: long-term follow-up

This report documents the long-term cognitive and adaptive outcome of children with infantile Pompe disease. Specifically, we describe the cognitive and adaptive functioning of seven children with classic infantile Pompe disease and two children with atypical infantile Pompe disease who have received enzyme replacement therapy (Myozyme?) for an average of 6 years, 8 months and 4 years, 1. 5 months, respectively. Multiple assessments of cognitive functioning were completed over time by means of individualized intelligence (IQ) testing. Adaptive functioning was measured by means of the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales-Second Edition (VABS-II). Consistent with our earlier findings regarding infants treated with ERT, children with classic infantile Pompe disease (ages 4 years, 11 months to 8 years, 11 months) were functioning at the lower end of the average range in comparison to their typical peers on their most recent IQ test. There was no evidence of a decline in their cognitive abilities over time. In contrast, the two children with atypical infantile Pompe disease (ages 5 years, 4 months and 5 years, 11 months) obtained above average IQ scores and demonstrated significant gains in IQ over time. For all children where adaptive functioning was assessed, their overall level of adaptive functioning on the VABS-II was lower than their Full Scale IQ scores on cognitive testing. Motor function appears to be an important factor impacting on reduced adaptive behavior. The implication of these findings on our understanding of a possible relationship between CNS status in children with Pompe and their adaptive and cognitive function is discussed.     

A craniofacial growth maturity gradient for males and females between 4 and 16 years of age

Differential growth of the craniofacial complex implies variation in ontogenetic patterns of development. This investigation quantifies the relative maturity—as defined by percent adult status—of nine cephalometric dimensions and stature. Analysis is based on 663 lateral cephalograms from a mixed longitudinal sample of 26 males and 25 females between 4 and 16 years of age. Graphic comparison of maturity status across the age range shows that variation is intergraded between the neural and somatic growth maturity patterns, as described by head height and stature, respectively. The maturity gradient moves from head height through anterior cranial base, posterior cranial base and maxillary length, upper facial height, corpus length, and ramus height to stature. After 9 years of age ramus height is less mature than stature. Anterior maxillary and mandibular heights diminish during transitional dentition and thereafter exhibit maturity patterns that compare to corpus length. Although females are consistently more mature than males, the gradient of variation between dimensions is sex independent.