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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Nutr.
Sec. Clinical Nutrition
Volume 11 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fnut.2024.1423904
This article is part of the Research Topic Nutritional Management of Childhood Obesity and Related Diseases View all 5 articles

Evaluation of Micronutrient and Nutritional Status among Preschool Children in Jordan: Results from a Nationwide Survey

Provisionally accepted
Reema F. Tayyem Reema F. Tayyem 1*Rawhieh Barham Rawhieh Barham 2Lama Al-Majali Lama Al-Majali 3Buthayna Al-Khatib Buthayna Al-Khatib 4Ayoub Al Jawaldeh Ayoub Al Jawaldeh 5*
  • 1 Qatar University, Doha, Qatar
  • 2 Ministry of Health, amman, Jordan
  • 3 World Food Programme, JORDAN, AMMAN, Jordan
  • 4 UNICEF Middle East and North Africa Regional Office, Amman, Amman, Jordan
  • 5 WHO, Cairo, Egypt

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Background: Jordan has shifted from issues of undernutrition to rising rates of overweight and obesity, while still dealing with micronutrient deficiencies. The 2010 national survey revealed high rates of iron and vitamin D deficiencies among preschool children, with about 20% experiencing vitamin A deficiencies. The goals of the 2019 Jordan National Micronutrient & Nutrition Survey (JNMNS) include assessing feeding practices of infants and young children, determining the frequency of consuming micronutrient-rich foods, evaluating causes of anemia, assessing the health status of specific subgroups, and comparing findings to the 2010 survey. Methods: JNMNS 2019 was a comprehensive national cross-sectional survey structured across four strata. Within each stratum, 40 primary sampling units were chosen in proportion to their size based on the 2015 Jordan census. Subsequently, the Department of Statistics conducted household listings in each PSU. Separate response rates were assumed for households and target groups, encompassing interviews, anthropometric measurements, and specimen collection. The survey aimed to collect data from 2,210 households, including interviews and anthropometry for 1,232 preschool children, with blood samples obtained from 992 of them. Results: The findings revealed no severe anemia cases, but 11% of preschoolers aged 12-59 months were anemic. Iron deficiency affected 22.4%, with 5% having iron deficiency anemia. Vitamin D deficiency increased to 22.9% in 2019. Stunting and wasting rates improved slightly to 6.3% and 0.1%, respectively. Overweight and obesity rates remained stable at 6.2% and 2.1%. Anemia decreased by 5-6%, but iron deficiency rose by 7%. Vitamin A deficiency decreased, but iron deficiency anemia remained largely unchanged. Undernutrition was rare, but vitamin D deficiency affected 27.7% of preschoolers, impacting growth and immunity. Iron deficiency, affecting 25% of children, poses a risk to cognitive development. Overweight or obesity affected 9% of children, a medium public health issue according to the WHO. Conclusion: Although severe anemia was rare, 11% were anemic, and 22.4% had iron deficiency, including 5% with iron deficiency anemia. Vitamin D deficiency affected 22.9%, impacting growth and immunity. While stunting and wasting improved, childhood overweight and obesity rates remained steady. Anemia decreased, but iron deficiency rose by 7%.

    Keywords: UNICEF Jordan, World Food Programme Jordan Authors' contribution: Conceptualization, Rawhieh Barham, Data curation, Reema Tayyem and Ayoub Aljawaldeha, Funding acquisition, Lama Almajali, Buthayna Al-Khatib and Ayoub Aljawaldeha, Methodology, Rawhieh Barham, Project administration, Rawhieh Barham, Supervision, Rawhieh Barham, Validation, Rawhieh Barham, Writing -original draft, Rawhieh Barham, Reema Tayyem, Lama Almajali, Buthayna Al-Khatib and Ayoub Aljawaldeha

    Received: 26 Apr 2024; Accepted: 10 Jul 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Tayyem, Barham, Al-Majali, Al-Khatib and Al Jawaldeh. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Reema F. Tayyem, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar
    Ayoub Al Jawaldeh, WHO, Cairo, Egypt

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