Co-occurrence of iron, folate, and vitamin A deficiency among pregnant women in eastern Ethiopia: a community-based study

Meseret Belete Fite; Abera Kenay Tura; Tesfaye Assebe Yadeta; Lemessa Oljira; Tara Wilfong; Newas Yusuf Mamme; Gemechu Asefa; Demiraw Bikila Gurmu; Wossene Habtu; Feyissa Challa Waka; Nahom Tefera Demiss; Meseret Woldeyohannes; Masresha Tessema; Dawit Alemayehu; Tahir Ahmed Hassen; Aboma Motuma; Kedir Teji Roba

doi:10.1186/s40795-023-00724-x

Co-occurrence of iron, folate, and vitamin A deficiency among pregnant women in eastern Ethiopia: a community-based study

BMC Nutr. 2023 Jun 23;9(1):72. doi: 10.1186/s40795-023-00724-x.

Authors

Meseret Belete Fite¹, Abera Kenay Tura^{2

3}, Tesfaye Assebe Yadeta², Lemessa Oljira⁴, Tara Wilfong⁴, Newas Yusuf Mamme⁴, Gemechu Asefa⁴, Demiraw Bikila Gurmu⁵, Wossene Habtu⁵, Feyissa Challa Waka⁵, Nahom Tefera Demiss⁶, Meseret Woldeyohannes⁶, Masresha Tessema⁶, Dawit Alemayehu⁶, Tahir Ahmed Hassen², Aboma Motuma², Kedir Teji Roba⁷

Affiliations

¹ Department of Public Health, Institute of Health Sciences, Wollega University, Nekemte, Ethiopia.
² School of Nursing and Midwifery, College of Health and Medical Sciences, Haramaya University, Harar, Ethiopia.
³ Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University Medical Centre Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands.
⁴ School of Public Health, College of Health and Medical Sciences, Haramaya University, Harar, Ethiopia.
⁵ Department of National Clinical Chemistry Reference Laboratory, Ethiopian Public Health Institute, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
⁶ Food Science and Nutrition Research Directorate, Ethiopian Public Health Institute, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
⁷ School of Nursing and Midwifery, College of Health and Medical Sciences, Haramaya University, Harar, Ethiopia. kedir.t.roba@gmail.com.

Abstract

Background: It is well known that the magnitude of undernutrition in Ethiopia is unacceptably high. The burden of co-occurrence of iron, folate, and vitamin A deficiency, on the other hand, has received less attention. Thus, in this study, we looked at the prevalence of iron, folate, and vitamin A deficiency in pregnant women in eastern Ethiopia.

Methods: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 397 pregnant women in Haramaya district, eastern Ethiopia. An interview-assisted questionnaire and blood serum were collected from pregnant women using standard techniques and shipped to an EPHI for micronutrient analysis. Factors associated with the co-occurrence of iron, folate, and vitamin A deficiency were identified using binary and multiple logistic regressions.

Results: According to this study, 81.6% of the participants were deficient in at least one micronutrient, and 53.53.2% were deficient in two or more. Women who did not receive iron-folic acid supplementation (AOR = 2.44; 95% CI = 1.52-3.92), did not attend Antenatal care (ANC) follow up (AOR = 2.88; 95% CI = 1.81-4.61), and reported low consumption of diversified diet (AOR = 2.18 (95% CI = 1.35-3.51) had a higher risk of co-occurrence of iron, folate, and vitamin A deficiency.

Conclusion: This study found that more than half of pregnant women were in multiple micronutrients, indicating a major public health issue. In addition to the IFA supplementation programs that are already in place, there is a need for multiple micronutrient supplementation.

Keywords: Co-occurrence; Ethiopia; Ferritin; Micronutrient deficiency; Pregnant women; Retinol; Vitamin A.