Researchers Link Protein Quality to Child Growth Outcomes Worldwide

By Office of the President | Jan 20, 2026

I am proud to share news of a research milestone that reflects Downstate’s sustained contribution to global child health and nutrition research.

At Downstate, we pride ourselves on taking on significant challenges, particularly by addressing how our environment and social structure impact health. One of the most critical problems in this domain is stunted growth, which affects hundreds of millions of children and adults, primarily in low- and middle-income countries.

The factors that drive growth stunting are highly complex, with many contributing. Still, efforts to fix this issue have generally hit roadblocks, with improvements in water quality returning substantially less value than we might hope. 

Thomas Wallach, M.D., Chief of Pediatric Gastroenterology, leads a global research team seeking to address this exact concern. His efforts have uncovered and strengthened our understanding of the role of dietary protein sources in supporting growth. 

Dr. Wallach’s group will have two articles in an upcoming issue of Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society – Biology, an imprint known for being the first modern scientific journal, founded by Isaac Newton. Both papers appear in a special issue examining how environmental factors influence pediatric growth, placing his work and Downstate’s profile within an ongoing international scientific discussion.

The team’s first paper, authored by, Shahzaib Khan, M.D., MBBS, Fellow, Department of Pediatric Gastroenterology, Kara Margolis, M.D., Professor, Department of Pediatrics, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, and Dr. Wallach, synthesized decades of basic, translational, and clinical research. That review identified deficiencies in animal-source protein and essential amino acids as key contributors to linear growth failure and intestinal disease among children living in low-resource settings.

The newly accepted manuscript extends the work through original research led by Janet Rosenbaum, Ph.D., Assistant Professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics. Using data from UNICEF’s global Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS), the study analyzes dietary patterns across multiple countries and finds a consistent association between access to animal-source protein and improved linear growth in children.

This research extends beyond Philosophical Transactions. The team has executed an ecological study, examining the national availability of animal-source protein and rates of childhood stunting, accepted for publication at BMC Public Health, an open access, peer-reviewed journal.

When considered alongside Dr. Wallach’s previously published translational research, including work in Science Translational Medicine establishing an RNA sequencing signal consistent with essential amino acid deficiencies, these studies form a coherent body of evidence spanning biological mechanisms, clinical outcomes, and population-level patterns.

Together, this Downstate-led research points to a clear conclusion: protein quality, not just calorie intake, plays a critical role in healthy child growth. By demonstrating the importance of animal-source protein across clinical, biological, and population data, these studies help clarify why many nutrition interventions have had limited impact and where future efforts should focus.

Stunted growth effects extend beyond height and physical growth. It influences brain development, learning, immune function, and long-term health. The implications of this work can inform nutrition policy, guide public health and development programs, and support investments to improve child health, educational outcomes, and long-term economic stability in low-resource settings.

Congratulations to Drs. Wallach, Rosenbaum, Margolis, and Khan for their sustained commitment to research that connects scientific insight with practical relevance for children and families globally.

To explore the research in greater detail, including slide presentations, background documents, and the related Nature article, click here.

More Information (PDF's)

• An ecological study of the association between childhood stunting, water, sanitation, andproteinaccess, 2001-20
• Animal Source Foods and Amino Acids Deficiency is Linked with Environmental Enteric Dysfunction and Stunting
• The Big Battalions: LLM/ML as force multipliers in clinical care, public health, and screening

Tags: Research, Pediatrics