Subclinical vitamin A deficiency in Israeli-Bedouin toddlers

Abstract

Objective: This study was designed to estimate the prevalence of and evaluate risk factors for subclinical vitamin A deficiency in Arab-Bedouin children at age 18 months, followed from birth. Design: Community-based, prospective, cohort study conducted in Rahat, a large Arab-Bedouin township, located near the city of Beer Sheva in the Negev region of southern Israel. Subjects: Healthy Bedouin infants (n¼117) from the township, born at Soroka University Medical Center (SUMC) in Beer Sheva, were randomly recruited at birth. Enrollment was restricted to well infants born weighing 42500 g at birth.Results: More than 15% of the children had serum retinol concentrations below 0.7 mmol/l. Male sex (odds ratio (OR) 4.17 [1.14-15.32], P¼0.031), stunting at age 12 months (OR 10.09 [2.00-50.97], P¼0.05) and warm season at age 18 months .28], P¼0.018) were associated with vitamin A deficiency. Maternal education decreased the risk of vitamin A deficiency (OR 0.81 [0.68-0.95], P¼0.011). Conclusions: Study results indicate a significant vitamin A deficiency problem among Bedouin children. Deficiency may be prevented by increasing dietary intake of vitamin A, especially during the warm season. Other interventions include preventing and controlling diarrheal diseases in order to avert nutritional stunting, and providing nutritional education to women of childbearing age.

A deficiência de vitamina A em crianças no Brasil e no mundo

“…O IVA-CG também enfatiza a fortificação de alimentos, como um método de combate a DVA, assim como a educação nutricional, e estudos relativos ao aumento da biodisponinilidade da vitamina A em alimentos 69 . Mora et al, 1998Mora et al, 1998Villalpando et al, 2003Paez et al, 2002Castejon et al, 2004De Navarro et al, 1996Pedro et al, 2004Coles et al, 2004Feungpean et al, 2002Tan Z et al, 2002Khatib, 2002Singh & West Jr., 2004Schémann et al, 2002Asrat et al, 2002Oso et al, 2003Kassaye et al, 2001Gregory Jr et al, 1995Palafox et al, 2003 *RS -Retinol Sérico.…”

Dietary vitamin A intake and serum retinol concentrations of preschool children from different socio‐economical levels in İzmir, Turkey

“…These two anthropometric parameters are indicators of acute and chronic malnutrition, which may be the cause of the identified VAD in these patients. Identification of the risk factors for low serum retinol will be helpful for all the community health programme developers and policymakers to develop new strategies for improving vitamin A status in at‐risk communities (21).…”

Vitamin A Deficiency

“…Findings of more recent surveys in China [81], India [82,83], Nepal [7], Nigeria [84], Brazil [85], Venezuela [86], Cambodia [87], and the Western Pacific [88] generally uphold the conservative estimates in Table 13.3. Some studies have identified vitamin A deficiency at levels of public health concern in populations not previously considered deficient, such as in Turkey [89,90] and among seminomadic Bedouin populations in Israel [91], where 15-20% of preschoolers have serum retinol concentrations below 0.70 µmol/L. Other studies have shown conditions to worsen amid conflict, such as in Afghanistan, where at least 7% of young children in Kabul City alone have xerophthalmia [92].…”