Anemia in Mexican women: a public health problem

Abstract

Objective. The purpose of this study is to quantify the prevalence and distribution of anemia among women of childbearing age (12 to 49 years) participating in the 1999 National Nutrition Survey (NNS-1999). Material and Methods. The survey had a probabilistic design and was representative at the national level, of urban and rural areas and four regions: North, South, Center, and Mexico City. Hemoglobin concentration was determined in capillary blood samples using a portable photometer (HemoCue), in 17 194 women, 697 of whom were pregnant. Results. The overall prevalence of anemia was 27.8% in pregnant women and 20.8% in non-pregnant women. Higher prevalences were observed in rural as compared to urban areas, both in pregnant (28.0% vs 27.7%) and non-pregnant (22.6% vs 20.0%) women, but the differences were not statistically significant (p >0.05). Women in the South had the greatest prevalence (23.2%), followed by those in the North (20.9%), Center (20.6%), and Mexico City (16.4%). Non-pregnant indigenous women had a prevalence of 24.8%, while in non-indigenous women the prevalence was 20.4%. Conclusions. Anemia in women of childbearing age is a growing public health problem that justifies the implementation of interventions for its prevention and control. The English version of this paper is available too at: http://www.insp.mx/salud/index.html Shamah-Levy T et alA nemia is the most frequent nutritiona-related disease worldwide, affecting half of children and pregnant women and between 20 and 25% of non-pregnant women in developing countries. 1 Both nutritional and non-nutritional factors may cause anemia. The most common nutritional cause is iron deficiency. Other nutritional causes are deficiencies of vitamin B 12 , folic acid, and vitamin A. [2][3][4] Among the non-nutritional causes of anemia are intestinal parasitic infections such as uncinariasis and trichinosis. [5][6][7][8] Other causes include hemodilution during pregnancy, concurrent acute and chronic infections, and menstrual bleeding. 9,10 Iron deficiency also has deleterious effects on the immune response, exercise endurance, cognitive ability, and psychosocial development. 11,12 The extent to which anemia affects the health of mothers and of their newborns is not completely established, but some studies suggest that anemia during pregnancy has adverse effects on both the mother and the fetus. 13,14 Moreover, severe anemia greatly increases the risk of maternal death. 10,14 Insufficient maternal iron stores are reflected in low iron stores in the newborn, leading to increased risk of iron deficiency in the first months of life. Iron deficiency may also have long-term consequences on the health of both mother and child. For example, iron deficiency anemia is associated with birth weight and pre-term birth.The most recent information on the extent and distribution of anemia in Mexico was reported in the 1988 National Nutrition Survey. 15 The present study was designed to quantify the prevalence and describe the distribution of anemia in women...

Anemia e fatores associados em mulheres de idade reprodutiva de um município do Nordeste brasileiro

“…An analysis carried out with indigenous women from Suruí (from the Indigenous Location Sete de Setembro, located between the States of Rondônia and Mato Grosso) corroborates this study, since the levels of hemoglobin presented linear reduction with the reduced socioeconomic status, thus increasing the prevalence of anemia in this group 8 . Shamah-Levy et al 29 also found significance in the variable socioeconomic condition after the multivariate adjustment with anemia in Mexican women.…”

Anemia no binômio mãe-filho no Estado de Pernambuco, Brasil

“…Shamah-Levy et al 32 , estudando 17.194 mulheres mexicanas, encontraram que no conjunto de variáveis significativamente associadas à anemia (área geográfica, idade, paridade, escolaridade, estrato socioeconômico, etnia), apenas a região geográfica (urbana/rural), paridade e condição socioeconô-mica foram mantidas no modelo final.…”

Análisis espacial de la anemia gestacional en el Perú, 2015.

“…En nuestro estudio, la diferencia porcentual de las prevalencias urbanas y rurales es de más de ocho puntos, no obstante, en otros contextos, como el de México, esta no presenta diferencias en sus proporciones según áreas de residencia, por lo que sería interesante, estudiar esta característica, y comparar resultados con Perú (19) . En contraste con nuestros hallazgos, un estudio en Haití reportó que la mayor parte de la población de mujeres anémicas en edad gestacional vivía en áreas urbanas, respondiendo a diferentes factores que en las comunidades rurales (quintil de ingresos y empleo), viéndose asociados en cambio, con el nivel educativo y sobrepeso (20) .…”