PREVALENCE OF VITAMIN A DEFICIENCY AMONG CHILDREN UNDER SIX YEARS OF AGE LIVING IN URBAN SLUMS OF LAHORE

Abstract

Aim: To calculate prevalence of Vitamin A Deficiency Disorders (VADD) as well as that of individual stages of Vitamin A deficiency in children less than 6 years of age living in urban slum areas of Lahore city and to draw emphasis on risk factors of VADD. Introduction: Vitamin A deficiency is common in regions where general diet pattern of population is not rich in vitamins and proteins. It is a major cause of blindness among preschool children in rural areas as well as urban slums in the developing countries. The study was conducted in August-Sept 2012 in urban slum of Shahdara Lahore results are presented in the paper. Material &Method: A cross sectional study, in which 400 children under 6 years were examined in door to door survey. Eye examination was done with torch and loupe. Post-survey methodology included Data entry, data cleaning, data analysis, data interpretation which was done with the help of statistician. Results: 95% of children were having normal-to-good health & 88% of mothers were having normal- to-good health. 99% of the study children were having vitamin A rich diet in their routine. 3% were found to have measles & 3% of children were suffering from diarrhea .The study did not find any case clinically related to vitamin A deficiency. Conclusion: To improve the situation of vitamin A deficiency in these areas more appropriate mix of interventions are needed. More operational research and evaluation are needed to diagnose the problem of vitamin A deficiency. Key Words: Children, Vitamin A, Blindness, Xerophthalmia, Pakistan.