Table 5.
The effect of Zinc on children’s behavior problems (N = 1314).
| Variable | Total Problems (R2 = 0.08) | Internalizing (R2 = 0.04) | Externalizing (R2 = 0.11) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| β (SE) | 95% CI | p | β (SE) | 95% CI | p | β (SE) | 95% CI | p | |
| Low Zn † | 2.13 (0.33) | 0.70–3.57 | 0.024 * | 0.63 (0.31) | −0.71–1.97 | 0.180 | 1.04 (0.28) | −0.17–2.25 | 0.066 |
| Gender: | |||||||||
| Male | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Female | −5.27 (1.21) | −10.43–−0.05 | 0.049 * | −0.00 (0.54) | −2.32–2.33 | 0.994 | −4.43 (0.38) | −6.07–−2.78 | 0.007 * |
| Location: | |||||||||
| City | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Suburb | 8.44 (1.47) | 2.11–14.78 | 0.029 * | 3.23 (0.32) | 1.87–4.60 | 0.010 * | 3.13 (0.91) | −0.78–7.03 | 0.075 |
| Rural | 1.96 (3.61) | −13.58–17.51 | 0.641 | 0.55 (0.83) | −3.03–4.13 | 0.576 | 0.96 (2.05) | −7.86–9.78 | 0.686 |
| Mother’s Education: | |||||||||
| Low (≤9 years) | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Medium (9–12 years) | −2.51 (1.83) | −8.44–3.41 | 0.209 | −0.52 (0.83) | −4.07–3.04 | 0.595 | −1.45 (0.37) | −3.05–0.15 | 0.060 |
| High (>12 years) | −4.58 (0.50) | −6.71–−2.44 | 0.012 * | −0.74 (0.54) | −3.06–1.57 | 0.301 | −2.79 (0.59) | −5.34–−0.26 | 0.042 * |
| Family size: | |||||||||
| ≤3 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| >3 | −0.83 (0.59) | −3.36–1.70 | 0.295 | −0.07 (0.13) | −0.63–0.48 | 0.622 | −0.50 (0.26) | −1.63–0.65 | 0.205 |
| House Size: | |||||||||
| <100 m2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| ≥100 m2 | −1.09 (0.91) | −5.01–2.83 | 0.354 | −0.07 (0.14) | −0.69–0.55 | 0.687 | −0.90 (0.46) | −2.90–1.09 | 0.191 |
† Defined as zinc <76.5 μg/dL; * Statistically significant at two-sided p < 0.05 level.