Vitamin A deficiency and associated risk factors in children aged 12-59 months living in poorest municipalities in the South Region of Brazil.

Objective: To estimate the prevalence of vitamin A deficiency (VAD) in children and associated risk factors.

Design: Analysis of data from a cross-sectional multicentre study performed in the primary care units of the municipalities from January to June 2015. The children's legal guardians answered a socio-economic questionnaire, and the children's blood samples were obtained by venipuncture.

Individual and contextual predictors of children's hemoglobin levels from Southern Brazilian municipalities in social vulnerability.

Few studies have investigated the simultaneous effect of individual and contextual factors on the occurrences of anemia. This study aims to evaluate the variability of children's hemoglobin levels from municipalities in social vulnerability and its association with factors of individual and municipal nature. This is a cross-sectional, multi-center study, with children data (12-59 months) collected from 48 municipalities of the Southern region of Brazil, that were included in the Brazil Without Poverty Plan.

Introduction of inappropriate complementary feeding in the first year of life and associated factors in children with low socioeconomic status.

The study aimed to identify factors associated with the introduction of inappropriate complementary feeding in the first year of life in children living in municipalities (counties) with low socioeconomic statusl. This was a cross-sectional multicenter study in 1,567 children 12 to 59 months of age in 48 municipalities participating in the Brazil Without Poverty plan in the South of Brazil. A structured questionnaire was applied to the children's parents to obtain socio-demographic information and the age at which inappropriate complementary foods were introduced for the first time in complementary feeding.

[Effectiveness of ferrous sulfate supplementation in the prevention of anemia in children: a systematic literature review and meta-analysis].

This was a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies evaluating the effectiveness of ferrous sulfate supplementation in the prevention of anemia in children under five. The database search included PubMed, Scopus, LILACS, and SciELO. Articles published between 1980 and 2011 in Spanish, English, or Portuguese were included, using the keywords child, preschool, infant, anemia, prevention, and iron supplementation.