The El Niño climatic phenomenon had the unexpected consequence of disrupting the growth of children in Peru during its passage in 1997, according to a study.
We are well aware of the multiple damage caused by ” El Niño “. Every two to seven years, this climatic anomaly linked to rising temperatures in the Pacific Ocean causes floods, droughts and disease. Peru is one of the most affected countries.
Up to 4 cm of growth retardation
But “El Niño” would also have unexpected consequences. He would make people smaller, according to a study published in the journal Climate Change Responses. Indeed, American researchers have observed a decline in the growth of Peruvian children born after the climatic episode of 1997, which caused the death of 27,000 people around the world – and mainly in northern Peru.
Before this episode, the height of Peruvian children tended to increase – an average of 0.6 cm from year to year. And this, thanks to the economic development of the country, which has led to a better hygiene of life (food, medical care).
But after the passage of “El Niño”, the researchers realized that the children only grew by 0.3 cm per year. In short, they grew half as fast … In some remote villages, the height of children had even fallen by 4 centimeters!
Malnutrition and diseases
Another observation: the children born after the start of the “El Niño” episode had a lower lean mass than those born before, without their fat mass being affected. Lean mass is the total mass of the skin, bones, muscles, organs, and fluids in the human body.
Researchers attribute these growth disturbances to the health impact of “El Niño”. Thus, “the rising waters destroyed roads and devastated crops, which probably led to malnutrition, epidemics of diarrhea and reduced access to medical care.” According to the study’s authors, the negative effects on children’s growth persisted three years after El Niño had passed.
The study thus underlines the importance of preventing the rural populations of the arrival of “El Niño” months in advance, so that they can anticipate the floods and its deleterious effects, in particular in the most fragile zones. .
>> Better understand the El Niño phenomenon (France 2 report)
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