Prevalence of Anemia among College Going Adolescent Girls of Ganjam District, Odisha: A Cross-sectional Study

Author: Suryamani Patro, Brundaban Sahu, Chandrashree Lenka and Anushriya Sahoo

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Abstract

Anaemia is a global health concern affecting adolescents and children in developing countries. The prevalence of anemia among adolescents in the South-East Asian region ranges from 27% to 55%. The significant challenges of anemia include poor cognitive and motor development. Hence, this cross-sectional study aimed to assess the extent of the prevalence of anemia and the impact of underlying factors among adolescent girls. Three hundred college-going adolescent girls from Ganjam district, Odisha, constituted the samples. The study reported a high prevalence (>90%) of anemia. About half of the anemic adolescents were underweight, and a majority (> 70%) belonged to the upper lower socio -economic class. Except for Body Mass Index and prevalence of clinical signs, no other socio-economic variables and food consumption patterns show any statistically significant association with the severity of anemia. The study concluded with suggestions to develop strategies to improve the socio-economic condition of the population, supported by nutrition education and anemia prophylaxis programs.

Keywords

Adolescent girls, hemoglobin, anaemia, BMI, anthropometric measurement, socio-economic class

Conclusion

The Study on the prevalence of anemia among the sample population recorded as high as 93% of the adolescent girls were anemic belonging to mild and moderate categories. The highest numbers of anemia cases (50%) were under-weighed adolescents and a majority (> 70%) of anemic respondents belongs to upper lower socio-economic class. No statistically significant (p>0.05) correlation was observed between the severity of anemia and their food consumption pattern, but a highly significant correlation (p<0.01) between the prevalence of the various clinical signs with that of anemia was observed among the sample population particularly those diagnosed with moderate anemia. Hence it may be concluded from the study that the low socio-economic class of the respondents may be the contributing factor for the prevalence of anemia to such an extent among the adolescent girls in the study area.

References

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How to cite this article

Suryamani Patro, Brundaban Sahu, Chandrashree Lenka and Anushriya Sahoo (2023). Prevalence of Anemia among College Going Adolescent Girls of Ganjam District, Odisha: A Cross-sectional Study. Biological Forum – An International Journal, 15(3): 115-121.