Division of Metabolic Diseases, Korea National Institute of Health, Cheongwon-gun, Chungcheongbuk-do 363-951, South Korea.
BMC Public Health. 2011 Nov 16;11:870. doi: 10.1186/1471-2458-11-870.
We investigated the relationship among socioeconomic status factors, the risk of anemia, and iron deficiency among school-aged children in Korea.
The sample consisted of fourth-grade students aged 10 y recruited from nine elementary schools in Korean urban areas in 2008 (n = 717). Anthropometric and blood biochemistry data were obtained for this cross-sectional observational study. Anemia was defined as hemoglobin levels lower than 11.5 g/dl. Iron deficiency was defined as serum iron levels lower than 40 ug/dl. We also obtained data on parental education from questionnaires and on children's diets from 3-day food diaries. Parental education was categorized as low or high, with the latter representing an educational level beyond high school.
Children with more educated mothers were less likely to develop anemia (P = 0.0324) and iron deficiency (P = 0.0577) than were those with less educated mothers. This group consumed more protein (P = 0.0004) and iron (P = 0.0012) from animal sources than did the children of less educated mothers, as reflected by their greater consumption of meat, poultry, and derivatives (P < 0.0001). Logistic regression analysis revealed a significant inverse relationship between maternal education and the prevalence of anemia (odds ratio: 0.52; 95% confidence interval: 0.32, 0.85).
As a contributor to socioeconomic status, maternal education is important in reducing the risk of anemia and iron deficiency and in increasing children's consumption of animal food sources.
本研究旨在探讨社会经济地位因素与学龄儿童贫血和铁缺乏症风险之间的关系。
本研究采用横断面观察法，选取 2008 年韩国城区九所小学四年级 10 岁学生 717 名为研究对象，收集其体格测量和血液生化指标数据。贫血定义为血红蛋白水平＜11.5 g/dl，铁缺乏症定义为血清铁水平＜40 ug/dl。通过问卷调查获取父母教育水平相关数据，通过 3 天食物日记获取儿童饮食相关数据。父母教育水平分为低水平和高水平，后者指高中及以上教育水平。
母亲文化程度较高的儿童发生贫血（P = 0.0324）和铁缺乏症（P = 0.0577）的风险较低。与母亲文化程度较低的儿童相比，该组儿童的动物来源蛋白质（P = 0.0004）和铁（P = 0.0012）摄入量更多，具体表现为其肉类、家禽及其制品（P＜0.0001）的摄入量更多。Logistic 回归分析显示，母亲文化程度与贫血患病率呈显著负相关（比值比：0.52；95%置信区间：0.32，0.85）。
作为社会经济地位的一个组成部分，母亲的教育水平对降低儿童贫血和铁缺乏症的风险以及增加儿童动物食物来源的摄入具有重要意义。
