Participants/population

Studies were included where the target population were Indigenous children in the first 1000 d after birth. Indigenous peoples were defined as communities that live within, or are attached to, geographically distinct traditional habitats or ancestral territories. They identify themselves as being part of a unique cultural group and descendants from groups present in the area before modern states were created and current borders were defined⁽³³⁾. All international Indigenous populations were included in the study. The children in the included studies had at least one biological parent with Indigenous heritage. Studies conducted across various population groups but involving Indigenous groups were included, provided the data from the Indigenous population groups were analysed separately and reported as such.

Studies were included if, at the time of the study, all children were non-hospitalised, in their family or community environment and without a specific disease. Studies conducted on children with malnourishment and failure to thrive were included.