Correlates of vitamin A deficiency among Indian rural preschool-age children.
OBJECTIVE
In India, 52,000 children go blind every year on account of vitamin A deficiency. The purpose of the study was to determine the correlates of vitamin A deficiency among 4,205 preschool-age children.


METHODS
Case-control study in Bihta Primary Health Center area, Bihar, India. Main outcome measures were dietary habits, maternal literacy, and birth order.


RESULTS
Vitamin A deficiency was found to be significantly higher (p<0.01) in children on a vegetarian diet (7.14%) (OR 5.32). Children born to a literate mother had a prevalence of only 1.35% in relation to a corresponding value of 4.11% in children born to illiterate mothers (p<0.01) (OR 3.15). Birth order of preschool-age children was significantly related to vitamin A deficiency. In birth order less than or equal to three, the prevalence was 2.81%, in comparison to those with birth order four or more, in whom the magnitude was significantly higher (p<0.01) at 5.61% (OR 2.08).
Pal
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Department of Community Medicine, Sikkim-Manipal Institute of Medical Sciences (SMIMS), Gangtok, Sikkim, India. ranabirmon@yahoo.co.in
Sagar
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D001722:Birth Order; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004032:Diet; D004522:Educational Status; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007194:India / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D012424:Rural Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D014802:Vitamin A Deficiency / Q000453:epidemiology*