Geophagy Is Associated with Growth Faltering in Children in Rural Bangladesh.

<bold>Objective: </bold>To determine the relationship between geophagy (mouthing of dirt, sand, clay, or mud) and growth faltering in young children.<bold>Study Design: </bold>We examined linear growth as height and weight standardized by age and sex, and weight standardized by height, in a cohort of children aged 6-36 months in rural Mirzapur, Bangladesh. We determined geophagy behavior at baseline through caregiver report. Anthropometric measurements were assessed at baseline and at a 1-year follow-up.<bold>Results: </bold>We found that among children not stunted at baseline, those with caregiver-reported geophagy at baseline grew less over 1 year compared with their peers, with a difference in the change of standardized height for age and sex of -0.31 (95% CI, -0.61 to -0.01).<bold>Conclusion: </bold>These findings show that caregiver-reported geophagy was associated with growth faltering in a pediatric population in rural Bangladesh. Future studies are needed to learn more about this exposure pathway and its relevance to child growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]