In Waterlow criteria, what is weight-for-length used to assess?

• A. Wasting due to chronic dehydration
• B. Wasting due to acute malnutrition
• C. Obesity risk
• D. Stunting due to chronic malnutrition

Answer: (B)

Weight-for-length in the Waterlow criteria is used to identify wasting, which signals acute malnutrition. It compares a child’s weight to what would be expected for their length, so a low value indicates recent or short-term energy deficiency or an acute illness that has led to weight loss. This is different from stunting, which uses height-for-age to detect chronic malnutrition, and from underweight, which uses weight-for-age and can reflect either acute or chronic malnutrition. The idea here is that low weight-for-length points to wasting due to recent nutritional stress or illness.