Review of surveys and supplementation studies of anaemia in Indonesia

Abstract

Iron-deficiency anaemia is one of the main nutritional problems in Indonesia, with a prevalence of 63.5% in pregnant women and 55.5% in pre-school children. Its frequency is related to low iron and folic acid contents of the diet. Intervention programmes to alleviate iron-deficiency anaemia are iron tablets for adults, iron syrup for infants and schoolchildren, and iron fortification of foods. Our studies have demonstrated that iron supplementation can reduce the prevalence of anaemia in pregnant women by 20% to 25%, and iron fortification can reduce it by 20% for those consuming the fortified foods. If iron-supplementation, iron-fortification, and diet-modification programmes were fully implemented in a community, the expected reduction in the prevalence of anaemia would be greater.