Sadighi Jila, Sheikholeslam Robabeh, Mohammad Kazem, Pouraram Hamed, Abdollahi Zahra, Samadpour Koroush, Kolahdooz Fariba, Naghavi Mohsen
Institute for Health Sciences Research, Tehran, Iran.
Public Health. 2008 Mar;122(3):313-21. doi: 10.1016/j.puhe.2007.05.002. Epub 2007 Jul 23.
Iron-deficiency anaemia is a major nutritional problem in Iran. A programme of flour fortification with iron was launched in 2001. A mid-term evaluation was conducted in 2004 to determine the effectiveness and coverage of this programme.
To determine the effectiveness of the program, a field trial was conducted in which blood hemoglobin and ferritin levels were measured in a sample population from Bushehr (intervention) and Fars (control) provinces. The target population was women aged 15-49 years. The coverage of the programme was determined using a cross-sectional study that measured iron content in samples of flour and bread from Bushehr province.
Five hundred and sixty-seven and 296 women were studied in the intervention and control provinces, respectively. Women in the intervention province had a lower prevalence of low ferritin levels compared with women in the control province (P=0.04). Women from the two provinces did not differ in terms of haemoglobin levels and iron-deficiency anaemia. The coverage of fortified flour and bread was 100% and 99.7%, respectively.
This mid-term evaluation found that the iron fortification programme in Iran has only had a beneficial effect on the prevalence of low ferritin levels. The final evaluation is likely to provide more useful information regarding the effect of this programme on a number of anaemia indicators.
缺铁性贫血是伊朗的一个主要营养问题。2001年启动了一项面粉铁强化计划。2004年进行了中期评估，以确定该计划的有效性和覆盖范围。
为确定该计划的有效性，进行了一项现场试验，在布什尔省（干预组）和法尔斯省（对照组）的样本人群中测量了血红蛋白和铁蛋白水平。目标人群为15至49岁的女性。通过横断面研究确定该计划的覆盖范围，该研究测量了布什尔省面粉和面包样本中的铁含量。
干预省和对照省分别有567名和296名女性参与研究。与对照省的女性相比，干预省的女性低铁蛋白水平患病率较低（P=0.04）。两省女性在血红蛋白水平和缺铁性贫血方面没有差异。强化面粉和面包的覆盖率分别为100%和99.7%。
这项中期评估发现，伊朗的铁强化计划仅对低铁蛋白水平的患病率产生了有益影响。最终评估可能会提供更多关于该计划对多种贫血指标影响的有用信息。
