Body mass index based anemic status among children who are attending the pediatrics ward of southern part of Chennai - A prospective study

Introduction: Anemia can increase the risk of maternal and child mortality, impair cognitive and physical development in children, and endanger physical performance in adults. Obesity is a growing global health problem; the prevalence of this condition has increased dramatically in recent years. Generally, it can be claimed that16-31% of children are suffering from obesity nowadays. One of the major causes of obesity is the rapid changes in lifestyles and dietary patterns namely, from traditional to new diets, a drastic shift which heralded large amounts of fat, sugar, and oil. The aim of the study: The presents study was undertaken to investigate the prevalence of anemia and interrelationship of anemia with BMI among the children population. Materials and methods: The study was conducted in 100 children in who were willing to participate in the study at Sree Balaji Medical College and Hospital, Chennai. Children were categorized into 4 group. Group I Normal weight subjects, group II underweight, group III overweight and group IV obese children. All the 100 children were age and sex-matched. Both the gender was in taken for the study. Parameters such as height, weight, BMI, Hb, serum ferritin were analyzed using standard techniques and results were analyzed accordingly. Results: Male children were more in the total population (65) when compared to female children (35). Group III (n=30) were more in our study population.The mean hemoglobin count was found to be less in Group II when compared with Group -1, Group-III, Group-IV. Serum ferritin level was found to be less in Group II when compared with Group -1, Group-III, Group-IV. Conclusion: This study suggests that the higher levels of total and central obesity should be taken into account when assessing the children's body iron status and should be treated before providing dietary recommendations to correct anemia.