Prevalence of Folate and Vitamin B12 Deficiency Aged 1 to 6 Years

Objective. To describe the distribution of folate and vitamin B12 deficiency in children. Materials and methods. Folate and vitamin B12 serum concentrations were measured in sample of 1000 children. Adjusted prevalence, mean concentrations and relevant associations were calculated. Results. The overall prevalence of folate and vitamin B12 deficiency were 5.2 % and 9.5 %, respectively. The highest prevalence of folate was found in the 2-year-old, and of vitamin B12 in the 1 year-old (9.1 %) groups. Conclusions. We describe the magnitude of folate and vitamin B12 deficiencies in children. The deficiency of both vitamins in children under 2 years old is a moderate public health problem in Mexico.