Iron Food Fortification for the Control of Childhood Anemia in Brazil

Iron deficiency anemia represents a serious nutritional problem worldwide, and it especially affects children and pregnant women in developing countries. According to Global Health Burden Disease Report of World Health Organization, anemia is considered the most prevalent public health problem in the World (World Health Organization [WHO], 2008), which requires public policies to combat iron deficiency and anemia. In Brazil, the National Survey of Demography and Health of Children and Women PNDS showed 20.9% prevalence of anemia among children 6 to 59 months, with the highest prevalence in the northeast (Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics [IBGE], 2010). Studies conducted between 1996 and 2007, involving children less than 5 years in different regions of the country, showed very high rates of anemia. The prevalences were 47.8-63.7% in south, 10.477.8% in southern, 55.1-84% in north, 35.7-89.1% in northeast, and 31-63.1% in midwest of Brazil (Jordao et al., 2009).