Eleven to Thirty Years after: What happened to the Severely Malnourished Children hospitalized at Lwiro in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo?

The aim of this study was to trace subjects with a history of severe acute malnutrition
(SAM) in childhood, to assess their long-term socioeconomic (SES) and health outcomes, and finally
to investigate the different cardiometabolic markers of chronic non-communicable diseases (NCDs).
Our results have shown that SAM childhood was associated with deleterious effects on anthropometry
and body composition in adulthood (smaller weight, height, muscle strength and less fat free mass). In
addition, adults with SAM history showed reduced human capital (reduced SES, self-esteem and cognition).
However, with regard to the risk of NCDs, apart from an increased risk of visceral obesity,
metabolic syndrome and glucose homeostasis, no additional risk was observed for other cardiometabolic
markers of NCDs (blood pressure, fasting blood glucose and lipid profile) and risk of NCD occurrence
(hypertension, diabetes mellitus, low HDL-C, and hypertriglyceridemia). Policymakers and donors
involved in combating the global spread of NCDs in adults should consider the long-term benefit of
reducing SAM in childhood as a preventive measure.