Vitamin A status and factors associated in healthy school-age children.

Background & Aims: Vitamin A deficiency (VAD) is one of the most widespread vitamin deficiencies. Vitamin A is essential for children in order to ensure a healthy life span and sustain the normal growth and development. Aim of this study is to examine vitamin A status, and factors associated with it, in healthy school-age children.

Methods: The study was carried out in schools in Altindag, the district of Ankara, from April to May 2009. 585 girls and 478 boys, a total of 1063 healthy children aged 5-16 years were taken into the study. Serum retinol, ferritin and hs-CRP levels and complete blood count of each case were measured. A questionnaire was developed to collect socio-economic and demographic information of the participants.

Results: Any subclinical VAD (SRL <0.7 μmol/L) was not detected in the children attending the study. However, SRLs were suboptimal in 2.2% of cases and these children were under a high risk of developing subclinical, and subsequently clinical VAD. There were significant positive correlations between serum retinol and hemoglobin values, and statistically significant negative correlation between serum retinol level and ferritin and hsCRP.

Conclusions: Vitamin A deficiency does not constitute an important public health problem for Altindag, Ankara, Turkey. Frequency of such vitamin deficiencies should be revealed before launching nationwide public health programs to fight with these deficiencies.