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Published on: January 19, 2024
Factors associated with childhood anaemia in Afro-descendant communities in Alagoas, Brazil
Haroldo da Silva Ferreira1,2,3, Laíse Gabrielly Matias de Lima Santos2, Carla Mariana Xavier Ferreira4
1Faculdade de Nutrição (FANUT), Universidade Federal de Alagoas (UFAL), Rua Constant Pacheco, 550, Cruz das Almas 57038-020, Maceió, AL, Brasil.
Insights
Childhood anemia is a significant public health issue in Brazil, affecting 38.1% of children. Key risk factors include male sex, younger age, larger household size, and maternal characteristics. Intersectoral strategies are urgently needed to address this problem.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Pediatrics
- Nutritional Epidemiology
Background:
- Childhood anemia is a prevalent global health concern, particularly in low-resource settings.
- Identifying associated risk factors is crucial for developing effective prevention and intervention strategies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate factors associated with anemia in preschool children residing in Afro-descendant communities in Alagoas, Brazil.
- To inform public health initiatives aimed at reducing childhood anemia prevalence.
Main Methods:
- A cross-sectional home survey was conducted in 2018 involving 428 mother-child pairs.
- Anemia was defined as a capillary blood hemoglobin level below 110 g/l.
- Poisson's regression with robust variance was used to calculate prevalence ratios and identify associated socio-economic, demographic, and health factors.
Main Results:
- The prevalence of anemia among children aged 6-59 months was 38.1% (95% CI: 33.5-42.7).
- Factors significantly associated with anemia included male sex, age under 24 months, larger household size (>4 residents), taller maternal stature (highest tertile), and higher child BMI-for-age z-score.
- These associations remained significant after adjusting for wealth index, vitamin A supplementation, and recent clinical visits.
Conclusions:
- The high prevalence of anemia highlights a critical public health problem in quilombola communities in Alagoas.
- Urgent, intersectoral strategies are needed to address modifiable risk factors and improve vigilance for non-modifiable ones.
- Addressing childhood anemia requires a multi-faceted approach considering socio-economic and health determinants.
Objective:
To investigate factors associated with anaemia in preschool children.
Design:
A home survey was conducted in 2018. Anaemia in children (capillary blood Hb level < 110 g/l) was the outcome, and socio-economic, demographic and health factors of the mother and child were the independent variables. The measure of association was the prevalence ratio, and its 95 % CI was calculated using Poisson's regression with robust variance and hierarchical selection of independent variables.
Setting:
Afro-descendants communities living in the state of Alagoas, northeast Brazil.
Participants:
Children aged 6-59 months and their mothers (n 428 pairs).
Results:
The prevalence of child anaemia was 38·1 % (95 % CI 33·5, 42·7). The associated factors with child anaemia were male sex, age < 24 months, larger number of residents at home (> 4), relatively taller mothers (highest tertile) and higher z-score of BMI for age, after further adjustment for wealth index, vitamin A supplementation in the past 6 months and clinical visit in the last 30 d.
Conclusions:
The high prevalence of anaemia observed reveals a relevant public health problem amongst children under five from the quilombola communities of Alagoas. Considering the damage caused to health and multiplicity of risk factors associated with anaemia, the adoption of intersectoral strategies that act on modifiable risk factors and increase vigilance concerning those that are not modifiable becomes urgent.
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