Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Feb;177(2):343-356.
doi: 10.1002/ajpa.24438. Epub 2021 Nov 8.

Mineral Nutrition of Samburu Adolescents: A Comparative Study of Pastoralist Communities in Kenya

Lora Iannotti  1 , Carolyn Lesorogol  1 , Charles Hilton  2 , Charles Owuor Olungah  3 , Theodore Zava  4 , Belinda Needham  5 , Yuhan Cui  1 , Eleanor Brindle  6 , Bilinda Straight  7
Affiliations

Mineral Nutrition of Samburu Adolescents: A Comparative Study of Pastoralist Communities in Kenya

Lora Iannotti et al. Am J Biol Anthropol. 2022 Feb.

Abstract

Objectives: This study aimed to characterize mineral nutrition (copper, magnesium, selenium, and zinc) in Samburu pastoralist youth, in the context of differential cultural transitions due to uneven changes in educational access, herding intensity, polygyny, and access to wild, domesticated, and market-sourced foods.

Materials and methods: Whole dried blood spots were collected in a total of 161 youth (highlands, n = 97; lowlands, n = 64) to assess concentrations of: cadmium, copper, lead, magnesium, mercury, selenium, and zinc. Concentrations were determined through Inductively Coupled Mass Spectrometry. Dietary intakes were assessed by 24-hour recall method and calculation of probability of inadequate intakes. WHO protocols were applied to collect anthropometric measures in the youth.

Results: Nearly half of the adolescents (47.8%) fell below the reference range for zinc status, and 88.2% had low zinc-to-copper ratios. High probability of nutrient inadequacies were evident for protein, fat, vitamins A, B12, C, and E. In generalized linear modeling, lowland residence was negatively associated with zinc status and the zinc-to-copper ratio, and positively correlated with selenium and copper status. Other significant correlates were: dairy livestock ownership; wife number of the youth's mother; meat consumption; vegetable consumption; protein intake; infectious disease morbidities; BMI; and hemoglobin concentrations.

Discussion: In recent decades, Samburu pastoralists of northern Kenya have experienced marked dietary changes in the context of market integration, extreme drought, diminishing pasture availability, and violent civil conflict. Some children (particularly boys) successfully supplement their diets by foraging for wild foods, while others (particularly actively herding girls) may be more vulnerable.

Keywords: adolescents; environment; mineral nutrition; pastoralism; polygyny.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

There were not conflicts of interest to declare for this study, “Mineral Nutrition of Samburu Adolescents: A Comparative Study in Pastoralist Communities in Kenya.”

References

    1. Amare Bemnet, Moges Beyene, Fantahun Bereket, Tafess Ketema, Woldeyohannes Desalegn, Yismaw Gizachew, Ayane Tilahun et al. 2012. Micronutrient levels and nutritional status of school children living in Northwest Ethiopia. Nutrition Journal 11:108. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Asare George, and Nani Albert. 2010. Serum levels of Cu, Se, and Zn in adult rural/urban residents in Ghana: paradigm shift? Biological Trace Element Research 137(2):139–49. - PubMed
    1. Black Robert E., Victora Cesar G., Walker Susan P., Bhutta Zulfiqar A., Christian Parul, de Onis Mercedes, Ezzari Majid et al. 2013. Maternal and child undernutrition and overweight in low-income and middle-income countries. Lancet 382(9890): 427–451. - PubMed
    1. Bollig Michael, and Lesorogol Carolyn. 2016. Editorial: The “new pastoral commons” of Eastern and Southern Africa. International Journal of the Commons 10(2):665–687.
    1. Brindle Eleanor, Fujita Masako, Shofer Jane, and O’Connor Kathleen A. 2010. Serum, plasma, and dried blood spot high-sensitivity C-reactive protein enzyme immunoassay for population research. Journal of Immunological Methods 362(1-2), 112–20. - PMC - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources