Iron Supplementation in 6-24 Months Infants in Miandorood City, Mazandaran Province, Iran (2019)

Iron deficiency anemia lead to a decrease in intelegence question (IQ) and a decrease in learning and mental and physical abilities. This study was done to determine the status of iron intake in infants aged 6 to 24 months under the cover of comprehensive health centers in Miandorood city, Mazandaran province, Iran during 2019.

This descriptive-analytical study was carried out on 400 infants aged 6-24 months who were enrolled in comprehensive health centers in Miandorood city, Mazandaran province, Iran during 2019. The status of iron drop consumption and mothers' awareness in this field were evaluated.

The mean age of the infants was 13.8±4.8 months. The range of the mother’s age was 28.8±5.6 years. Of these, 274 (68.5%) of infants used iron drops regularly, 106 case (26.5%) often, and 20 case (5.0%) never. The mother's knowledge score was significantly correlated with the type of iron intake, height percentile, and maternal education level (P<0.05). Evaluation of the possible causes of irregular iron intake shows that the most frequent cases were forgetting (28.8%), 9.5% for nausea and vomiting, and ‎‎9.0% for teeth color changing.‎

Mothers' awareness of iron drops consumption was good. The most important barriers to regular iron intake in the present study were forgetfulness, vomiting, and tooth discoloration.