IJCM_64A: Prevalence of anemia among school going adolescent girls in selected health blocks of Himachal Pradesh

Abstract

Background: Iron deficiency is the primary cause of anemia among school going adolescent girls in India Objective: To find the prevalence of anemia among school going adolescent girls in selected health blocks of Himachal Pradesh Methodology: It was a community based cross-sectional study where 09 health blocks from 07 districts were selected randomly using probability proportionate to size criteria for selection of blocks. A total of 720 adolescent girls were enrolled for the study. Results: The mean age of the study subjects was 15.82±1.19 years. The prevalence of anemia observed was 31.6% and mean hemoglobin levels observed were 12.73±4.85 gm/dL Conclusion: We observed prevalence of anemia among school going adolescent girls as 31.6% which is lower than that reported in India. A way to reduce this burden of anemia among adolescent girls is WIFS which has reduced anemia prevalence among adolescent girls but still there is a long way to go