Household Salt Iodine Level and Associated Factors in Dire Dawa City Administration, Eastern Ethiopia

Background: Iodine is the commonest, but not the only, cause for the low level of thyroid hormones. Salt iodizationis the preferred strategy to control this Deficiency Disorder. However, there is limited information on the level ofiodine on household salt and the associated factors in Dire Dawa city administration. The main aim of this study wasto assess the level of iodine in the household salt and associated factors in Dire Dawa City Aadministration.Methods: Community based cross-sectional study was conducted in Dire Dawa City Administration among randomlyselected 402 households. The level of iodine was determined by using rapid test kit and iodometric titration test. Datawere collected by structured questionnaire using face to face interview on socio-demographic, economic dietarydiversity, salt storage and utilization. The data were entered in to EpiData Version 3.1 and exported to SPSS Version20.0 for analysis. All the variables that had P<0.25 with outcome variable in the bivariate analysis were included inthe multivariate regression model, and P-value ≤ 0.05 was declared as statistically significant.Results: Inadequate amount of iodized salt (<15 parts per million) was found among 51% of the households and49.5% of the households’ salt had inadequate (less than 20 mg/kg) iodine concentration using Iodometric titration test.Using non-packed salt (AOR=1.3; 95% CI: 1.1-4.73), knowledge about the importance of iodized salt (AOR=2.3;95% CI: 1.05-4.90), storing the salt for more than two months (AOR=2.1;5% CI: 1.14-4.61), purchasing salt fromopen market (AOR=2.3; 95% CI: 1.1-6.5) and retail shop (AOR=1.6;95% CI:1.1-5.1), and divorced, widowed andseparated (AOR=2.93; 95% CI: 1.56-6.59) were significantly associated with the availability of inadequate iodizedsalt at the households.Conclusions: In the study area, many of the households did not have access to adequately iodized salt at the householdlevel. Hence, the concerned stakeholders should sensitize the community about the importance of iodized salt and itsproper handling at the household level.