PREVALENCE AND PREDICTORS OF IRON DEFICIENCY ANEMIA AMONG PRESCHOOL CHILDREN: A CASE OF UASIN GISHU COUNTY, KENYA

Abstract

Iron Deficiency Anemia (IDA) is the most widespread micronutrient deficiency in Africa and South Asia. About 2 billion people in these continents have IDA with approximately 50% of them being children of preschool-age. In Kenya, IDA among preschool-aged children stands at 25% which is relatively high yet very minimal intervention is conducted for that age group. Furthermore, despite the fact that Uasin Gishu County is Kenya’s food basket, reports indicate high levels of malnutrition among preschool-aged children in the county with 33% being stunted, 11% being underweight and 3% being wasted. Little is known about micronutrient deficiencies such as IDA in this county despite its tremendous consequences, especially among preschool-aged children. This study therefore sought to contribute towards improved community nutrition by assessing the predictors of IDA among preschool-aged children in Uasin Gishu County. The objectives of this study were; to evaluate the relationship between socio-economic characteristics and IDA among preschool-aged children in Uasin Gishu County, to assess the nutrition status of preschool-aged children through anthropometric measures in Uasin Gishu County, to determine the prevalence of IDA among preschool-aged children in Uasin Gishu County and to determine the influence of dietary diversity on IDA among preschool-aged children in Uasin Gishu County. A cross-sectional study design was used with a target sample size of 289 children aged 6- 59 months. A three-tier sampling technique was used consisting of purposive sampling,stratified sampling and simple random sampling. Data was collected by use of researcher-administered questionnaires and the Hemoglobin levels were measured by the use of a portable HemoCue® Hb 201+ system. WHO Anthro Software and STATA version 18 were used to analyze data. From the results it’s evident that the prevalence of IDA was 48.4%. The highest number of children suffering from IDA were between the ages of 6-12 months (44.4%) and 24-35 months with (44.8%) There was no statistically significant relationship between IDA and children’s age group, (χ2 = 5.5201, p-value=0.701). Children from married parents were 4.53 times more likely to be normal (not suffering from IDA) [Odds ratio (OR):4.53; 95%CI], p-value <0.01. An increase in wealth was found to be associated with a decreased risk of IDA, [OR: 5.45; (95% CI, 1.18 to 5.125), p-value<0.01]. A statistically significant relationship between dietary diversity and IDA, Tau (2, N = 289) = 0.0667, p-value = 0.0445. The predictors of IDA are poor nutrition status, low maternal education, low dietary diversity and low household wealth index. Due to the high prevalence of IDA, the government should consider prophylactic iron supplementation for susceptible children.