OBJECTIVE: Short stature may reflect health in early life and be an enduring disability. How birth weight, gender, household, elementary schooling, and diet play a role in associations between stature and overall school competence (OSC) have been assessed. DESIGN: The 2001-2002 Nutrition and Health Survey in Taiwan for elementary school children (n = 2274, 52.1% boys) was linked to birth records. It provided sociodemographic, dietary quality, body compositional, and school performance (as Scale for Assessing Emotional Disturbance, SAED; OSC as an SAED subscale) data. Lower birth weight was ≤15th percentile: 2850 g for boys and 2700 g for girls, and stature as z-scores for Taiwanese. Multivariable linear regression was used for relationships between OSC and stature. Trends in OSC by stature and school grade were assessed. SETTING: The 2001-2002 Nutrition and Health Survey in Taiwan for elementary school children. PARTICIPANTS: 2274 schoolchildren aged 6-13 years. RESULTS: Compared to normal height (-2< height z-score (HAZ) <2), shorter girls (HAZ ≤ -2) had a lower OSC (8.87 vs. 10.5, p<0.05), and taller girls (HAZ ≥ 2) had a better OSC (12.3 vs. 10.5, p<0.001). Maternal education and household income each contributed more than 5% of OSC variance. OSC and HAZ among girls were positively associated; and emotional disturbance negatively associated. Shortness-associated lower OSC underwent remediation with advancing school-grade. Stature and OSC were not evidently related in boys. CONCLUSIONS: Shorter stature can compromise OSC among school girls. The major determinants in shorter girls are less household income and limited parental education.
