International Business School, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an 710069, Shaanxi, China.
Center for Experimental Economics of Education, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an 710069, Shaanxi, China.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2018 Aug 23;15(9):1825. doi: 10.3390/ijerph15091825.
In the past, iron-deficiency anemia in children has had a widespread presence in rural China. Given the recent economic growth in China, it is unclear if anemia among infants/toddlers remains a problem. The objective of this study is to measure the anemia rate in rural Chinese infants/toddlers across four major subpopulations and attempt to discover the sources of anemia. We use a mixed-methods approach combining quantitative data on 2909 rural Chinese infants/toddlers and their families with qualitative interviews with 84 caregivers of infants aged 6 to 30 months. Quantitative analysis indicates that the overall prevalence of anemia (43%) within sampled infants/toddlers was high, especially in comparison to the low rates of stunting (2⁻5%), being underweight (2%), and wasting (2⁻4%). These findings suggest that in rural China, anemia stems from the poor quality of the diets of infants/toddlers, rather than insufficient quantities of food being consumed. Qualitative analysis illustrates the factors that are contributing to anemia. Caregivers do not understand the causes of this condition, the symptoms that would lead one to recognize this condition, or the steps needed to treat their child with this condition. The findings offer a comprehensive understanding of the limited awareness of anemia among rural Chinese caregivers.
过去，缺铁性贫血在中国农村地区广泛存在。鉴于中国最近的经济增长，尚不清楚婴幼儿贫血是否仍然是一个问题。本研究的目的是测量中国农村婴幼儿在四个主要亚人群中的贫血率，并试图发现贫血的原因。我们采用混合方法，结合了 2909 名农村婴幼儿及其家庭的定量数据和对 84 名 6 至 30 个月大婴幼儿照顾者的定性访谈。定量分析表明，在所抽样的婴幼儿中，贫血的总体患病率（43%）很高，尤其是与矮小症（2-5%）、体重不足（2%）和消瘦（2-4%）的低发病率相比。这些发现表明，在中国农村，贫血是由于婴幼儿饮食质量差，而不是食物摄入量不足造成的。定性分析说明了导致贫血的因素。照顾者不了解这种情况的原因、会导致人们认识到这种情况的症状，或者治疗患有这种情况的孩子所需的步骤。研究结果全面了解了农村中国照顾者对贫血的认识有限。
