Iron and Vitamin A Status of Children Aged 0 to 36 Months in Thulamela Municipality, Vhembe District, South Africa.

Autor: Mugware A; Department of Nutrition, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Venda, Private Bag x5050, Thohoyandou 0950, South Africa., Motadi SA; Department of Nutrition, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Venda, Private Bag x5050, Thohoyandou 0950, South Africa., Bere A; Department of Mathematical and Computational Science, Faculty of Science, Engineering and Agriculture University of Venda, Thohoyandou 0950, South Africa., Mushaphi LF; Department of Nutrition, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Venda, Private Bag x5050, Thohoyandou 0950, South Africa.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Children (Basel, Switzerland) [Children (Basel)] 2024 Aug 20; Vol. 11 (8). Date of Electronic Publication: 2024 Aug 20.
DOI: 10.3390/children11081018
Abstrakt: Objective: The present study assessed the iron and Vitamin A status of children aged 0 to 36 months in Thulamela municipality, Vhembe District. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 250 children aged 0 to 36 months attending well-baby clinic services with their mothers. Convenience sampling was used to select study participants, and simple random sampling was used to choose clinics. Data were gathered via a questionnaire administered by the researcher and field workers from August to September 2019. Standard techniques were used to measure body weight and height. In addition, serum retinol, haemoglobin, iron, ferritin, transferrin saturation, and transferrin levels were also assessed. Information on dietary diversity was gathered through a 24 h dietary recall. Results: The prevalence of underweight, wasting, and stunting was 3.6%, 2%, and 9.2%, respectively. Using serum retinol <10 µg/dL, 22% of children had vitamin A deficiency. The prevalence of anaemia was 53.6%, while 13.1% of children had iron deficiency anaemia when using serum ferritin of less than 12 μg/dL. Most children (90.8%) had an inadequate dietary diversity score, while 9.2% had sufficient dietary diversity. The most consumed food groups were grains, roots and tubers, vitamin A rich fruits and vegetable, and flesh foods. A higher percentage (44%) of children with low iron ferritin were underweight compared to those with normal iron ferritin (df = 1, p -value = 0.007). Conclusion: Iron, anaemia, and vitamin A deficiencies, accompanied by a high prevalence of stunting, were common among children in Thulamela Municipality. Thus, improving nutritional status in this area is a critical need.
Databáze: MEDLINE