Household food insecurity and its association with anaemia in Mexican children: National Health and Nutrition Survey 2012.

Objectives: To assess the association between household food insecurity (FI) and the presence of anaemia among Mexican children who were between 12 and 59 months old, and to determine whether this association differs by geographical regions.

Methods: We analysed 7468 children of ages between 12 and 59 months, based on data from the 2012 National Health and Nutrition Survey (ENSANUT 2012). Haemoglobin was measured in capillary blood. Household FI levels were defined according to the Latin American and Caribbean Food Security Scale. An ordinal logistic regression model was developed to assess the relationship between FI and anaemia. The interaction between geographical regions and FI was determined.

Results: The highest proportion of anaemia occurred in children with severe household FI (24.3%), compared to those from households with food security (21.2%). Children from severe FI households have a higher adjusted prevalence of anaemia than those from households with food security. FI and anaemia were associated mainly among children residing in the southern region of Mexico.

Conclusions: Our findings can contribute to a better understanding of FI and anaemia in children and to strengthen interventions to address these problems.