Vitamins A, and C and folate status in Mexican children under 12 years and women 12-49 years: a probabilistic national survey.
OBJECTIVE
To describe the epidemiology of Vitamin A and C and folic acid deficiencies and their association with sociodemographic and dietary factors in a national probabilistic sample of Mexican women and children.


METHODS
This is a probabilistic sample from the National Nutrition Survey 1999 (ENN-99) including 1,966 children and 920 women. Vitamins A and C were measured in serum by high-performance liquid chromatography, and folic acid in total blood by a microbiological method. Determinants for such deficiencies were explored by multiple regression models.


RESULTS
Vitamin A deficiency (retinol < 10 micrograms/dl) was rare in both children and women. But subclinical deficiency (retinol > 10 and < 20 micrograms/dl) was present in 25% of children. The likelihood of subclinical deficiency of vitamin A was less in older children (OR = 0.98, p = 0.01) and in women with higher body mass index (OR = 0.93, p = 0.01). About 30% of children < 2 years of age and 40% of women were vitamin C deficient. The likelihood of vitamin C deficiency was less in children and women as socioeconomic level increased (OR = 0.69, p = 0.03, and OR = 0.80, p = 0.04), and higher in older women (OR = 1.02, p = 0.05). The prevalence of folate deficiency varied in children (2.3 to 11.2), in women it was 5%. Folate deficiency was less in children of higher socioeconomic level (OR = 0.62, p = 0.01), and in those eating more vegetables (OR = 0.22, p = 0.01).


CONCLUSIONS
The high prevalence of subclinical deficiency of vitamin A in children is indicative of risk of further deterioration under adverse circumstances. Vitamin C deficiency in both children and women implies in addition diminished ability for iron absorption. The English version of this paper is available too at: http://www.insp.mx/salud/index.html.
Villalpando
Salvador
S
Centro de Investigación en Nutrición y Salud, Instituto Nacional de Salud Pública, Avenida Universidad 655, colonia Santa María Ahuacatitlán 62508 Cuernavaca, Morelos, México. svillalp@insp.mx
Montalvo-Velarde
Irene
I
Zambrano
Norma
N
García-Guerra
Armando
A
Ramírez-Silva
Claudia Ivonne
CI
Shamah-Levy
Teresa
T
Rivera
Juan A
JA
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001206:Ascorbic Acid Deficiency / Q000453:epidemiology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D005494:Folic Acid Deficiency / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008800:Mexico / Q000453:epidemiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D009749:Nutrition Surveys; D009752:Nutritional Status; D015995:Prevalence; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D014802:Vitamin A Deficiency / Q000453:epidemiology*