Assess Prevalence of Anemia among Children and Adolescents

Abstract

Background:
Planning preventative measures requires knowledge of the incidence of anemia in school-age children as well as the risk factors that already exist. Anemia is a significant public health issue. Anemia is more common.
among women in contrast to men. It has a negative impact on learning and academic performance and impairs cognitive and physical work capability.
Objective:
The purpose of this study was to ascertain the prevalence of anemia in school-age male and female children (6–18 years old)
Methods and subjects:
235 school-age children (6–18 years old)—116 males and 119 females—were the subjects of a cross-sectional study. Participants and their family members gave their oral consent. Each participant had a blood sample drawn in order to determine the prevalence of anemia and related factors in the study population.
Findings: The study found that 38.7% of people had anemia overall. was 53.8% for girls and 23.3% for males, with a statistically significant difference. There was a statistically significant difference in the prevalence of anemia between families with fewer than five members (27.1%) and those with more than five members (74.1%).
Results:
According to the current study, children born to fathers with low levels of education had anemia at rates of 64%, 54.5%, and 10.1%, respectively. Children of illiterate and somewhat educated mothers had anemia rates of 56.4% and 17.4%, respectively, with a statistically significant difference. According to the study's findings, the prevalence of anemia in infants born to farmers, merchants, government employees, and private employees was 61.8%, 48.5%, 5.6%, and 26.7%, respectively. According to the mothers' occupations, there were statistically significant differences in the percentage of anemic children born to housewives, merchants, and private employees: 41.4%, 33.3%, and 20%, respectively. According to the study, children who ate meat once a week had anemia rates of 66.2%, whereas children who ate meat twice a week had anemia rates of 38.7%. These differences were statistically significant. Children who ate vegetables once a week had a 55% anemia rate, those who ate them twice had a 28.8% anemia rate, and those who ate veggies three times or more a week had a 15.9% anemia rate.
Conclusion
According to the current study, anemia rates were 44.1% for those who ate fruits once a week, 13% for those who ate twice a week, and 11.8% for those who ate three or more times a week.