Prevalence of Anaemia and its Association with Demographic Factors among Adolescent Girls in Coimbatore District, India

Anaemia is the most prevalent nutritional problem worldwide and it is mainly caused due to nutritional deficiency. Iron deficiency anaemia is the most common type of anaemia affecting 55.8% of adolescent girls. This study was conducted to estimate the prevalence of anaemia and to study the association between the Haemoglobin and socio-demographic variables.

The present study was conducted in Government Schools of Coimbatore among the adolescent girls who were enrolled in Weekly Iron Folic Acid Supplementation (WIFS).Total 605 samples were selected from three schools by convenience sampling method. Blood samples were collected for Haemoglobin estimation. Anthropometry measurement was recorded to calculate the BMI.

Prevalence of anaemia was 55.7%. There was a significant association identified with number of sibling, type of family, birth order, family income, education & occupation of parents, place of residence and sources of information (P<0.001).Insignificance association found with age, type of diet and religion. Prevalence of anaemia was higher among underweight girls than normal BMI girls. There was no statistically significant association found between Hb and BMI.

Though the children were enrolled in WIFS the high prevalence of anaemia identified. Comprehensive intervention strategies are required to combat anaemia and maintaining the health of adolescent girls.