(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- New research shows healthy growth in children is directly related to water supply, water storage and sanitation. The study shows the need to improve water supplies and sanitation in developing countries.

Historically, improvements in water supply and sanitation have been documented to benefit health and improve life expectancy. However, the effects of improved water supply and sanitation on childhood growth have not been clearly studied. Researchers from Johns Hopkins University conducted a study to assess the effects of water and sanitation on childhood health in a group of Peruvian children.

For the study, researchers followed up once a day to see if the each participating child had diarrhea and once a month for increases in height. Researchers also noted the household water situation and sanitation.

Study authors report, at 2 years old, children with the worst conditions for water source, water storage and sanitation were one centimeter shorter than children in the best conditions. They also found the children in the worst conditions had 54-percent more episodes of diarrhea than children in the best conditions. Researchers also say children from households with small water storage containers that were often left uncovered had 28-percent more episodes of diarrhea than the children from households with large water storage containers. As for sanitation, lack of sewage disposal resulted in a height deficit of 0.9 centimeters at age 2 in the children.

Researchers conclude the findings of this study show the need to improve sanitation in developing countries. They say improved and more reliable water sources should discourage water storage at risk of becoming contaminated, decrease episodes of diarrhea, and improve the growth in children.

In an accompanying commentary, researchers from the University of Virginia say the number of people unable to get safe water is horrific. They say 2.9 billion people do not have access to safe water and 4.2 billion live without sanitation. They write, "We must not delay investing in measures known to alleviate the devastating long-term societal costs of inadequate water, poor sanitation and early childhood diarrhea."

SOURCE: The Lancet, 2004;363:112-116 and 94

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