LOW PREVALENCE OF ANEMIA AMONG NAVAJO CHILDREN

Abstract

Both historical and recent evidence has suggested that iron deficiency may be common among southwestern American indians. To assess the nutritional status of young Navajo indians, nutritional histories, heights, weights, and fingerstick blood samples were collected from 576 children from 6 months to 10 years of age. Using Harvard standards, 19% of heights and 9% of weights were <3rd percentile for age; only 2% of heights and 4% of weights were >97th percentile. Microhematocrit determinations demonstrated a very low prevalence of anemia: only 2% were >2 S.D. below the mean for age. Plasma iron levels were determined on 440 samples with a new spectrophotometric method using ferrozine and requiring 50μl of plasma. Less than 6% of the children had iron values <12.5μmol/l (70μg/dl). Although almost all hematocrit values were normal, children with lower hematocrits for age tended to have lower plasma irons (p<.001) and to be shorter (p<.001) and lighter (p<.03). A much higher proportion of children with iron deficiency anemia has been reported in other U.S. populations of similar economic level. The high prevalence of breastfeeding (46%), the use of iron fortified infant formulas (by history 75% of formula users), participation in food supplementation programs, and a cultural tradition that includes meat in children's regular diet may be factors in the unusually low prevalence of nutritional anemia among these Navajo children.