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This study examined the association of self-rated health with physical function and emotional well-being, while controlling for differences in sex, age and anthropometry. Subjects were participants in a multicentre study originated by the International Union of Nutritional Sciences (IUNS). A total of 151 elderly Guatemalan subjects were examined using a questionnaire which included information on self-rated health, activities of daily living, well-being, and a common battery of anthropometric variables. Adjusted odds ratios (OR) obtained with polytomous logistic regression showed that subjects with the highest score on the well-being index compared with those with the lowest were 1.67 times more likely (P-value <0.001, confidence interval (C.I.) = 1.31-2.14) to rate themselves in 'good' health versus 'fair' and 'poor' health. Subjects with the highest score versus those with the lowest on the mobility index were 1.15 times more likely (P-value <0.05, (C.I.) = 1.00-1.32) to rate themselves in 'good' health versus the other health ratings. These are the first results to examine the relationship of self-rated health to physical function and emotional well-being of elderly, free-living Guatemalans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to determine whether simplified indicators for usual consumption of selected food groups, specifically those derived from either the percentage of the number of daily portions, the percentage of total daily weight consumed, or both, could serve as proxies for the conventional expression of daily energy intake, these indicators were computed and compared from food-frequency data in a data set. Food consumption was reported in frequency categories and portion sizes per month, per week, or per day, and the cumulative sum was divided by 365 to provide a daily average. The survey was done in the township of Santa Cruz and three hamlets of a rural county seat in Guatemala. Data from food-frequency questionnaires from 269 individuals (55 men and 214 women aged 16 to 86 years) were analyzed. For foods of plant origin, the percentage of total energy, percentage of total food weight, and percentage of total number of portions consumed showed low correlations (r < .45). When subdivided into specific foods and food groups (fruits and vegetables, red meat, etc.), marked differences were revealed across sites and among different indicators of consumption. Despite the simplicity of calculation, neither the percentage of weight of food in a group nor the percentage of portions consumed could serve reliably as proxies for their contributions to the percentage of total energy in this rural population in Guatemala.

Objectives: To compare thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) levels in neonatal cord blood between study sites in Bangladesh, Guatemala and the United States. Also, to compare neonatal TSH results with indicators of iodine deficiency in school children., Design: Consecutive births and, in school children, cross-sectional surveys., Setting: Savar, Bangladesh; San Pedro Sacatepequez, Guatemala; and Atlanta, United States., Subjects: In each study site, cord blood was spotted on to filter paper and TSH levels determined using a sensitive monoclonal assay. In the USA, heel stick blood specimens from newborns spotted on to filter paper were also obtained as well as exposure to iodine-containing antiseptics during the birthing process. Urine specimens were collected from mothers of newborns and tested for iodine concentration. School children in the same areas were surveyed for thyroid size by palpation and ultrasonography, and urine specimens collected for iodine concentration., Results: Between 141 and 243 cord blood specimens were collected from each study site. The prevalence of elevated cord blood TSH levels (> 5 mUl(-1)) was high in all study sites, from 58% to 84%. All sites would be categorised as having 'severe' iodine deficiency based on WHO/UNICEF/ICCIDD criteria. Iodine-containing antiseptics were used during 98% of the births in the USA but not in Bangladesh or Guatemala. The neonatal TSH classification indicated more severe iodine deficiency levels than classifications based on urinary iodine and goitre in school children., Conclusions: In the USA, elevated TSH levels may be partially attributed to use of beta-iodine-containing antiseptics prior to birth. We recommend the cautious interpretation of TSH results in newborns for the assessment of iodine deficiency disorders when iodine-containing antiseptics are used during the birthing process.