Iron Deficiency in India Samples for Students †MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the Iron Deficiency in India. Answer: Introduction Diet plays an essential role when it comes to effective development as well as prevention of various non-communicable diseases in the body. Diseases such as osteoporosis, type 2 diabetes, coronary heart infections, and certain types of cancer among other health complications can effectively be managed to depend on the diet an individual constantly consumes (Godyn, Pieszka, Lipi?ski, Starzy?ski, 2016) This paper evaluates and examines the lack of iron as a diet related health complication with a major focus on its determinants, epidemiology, and etiology. The report also presents a critical identification and analysis of two national programs in India that have been trusted with the responsibility of dealing with anemia among the Indian citizens with a primary focus on how the community is engaged and involved, strengths of the adopted evaluation frameworks, as well as program sustainability. The report hence helps in the knowledge application of both macro- and micronutrients while addressing anemia as a diet-related deficiency as well as the relationship it has with the economic, social, cultural, and environmental factors affecting the Indian communities. Determinants, epidemiology and etiology Iron is an essential element in the human diet as it is responsible for the formation of hemoglobin in the blood. Low hemoglobin levels on the body often cause iron deficiency infection, normally termed as iron deficiency anemia(Hassan, Salim, Humayun, 2017). The hemoglobin within the body is often contained in the red cells of the blood that form an essential part of the blood for the transportation of dissolved oxygen into the body, carbon dioxide as a waste product, and nutrients among other essential products in the body. The recommended body requirement of iron is 12.1 to 15.1 grams per deciliter in women, 13.8-17.2 in men, and 11 -16 g/dl in children while pregnant women requirement range from 11-15.2 g/dl (Brabin, Brabin, Gies, 2013). For an infected person, most of the visible symptoms include tiredness, a sore tongue, headache, dysphagia, hair loss, lack of appetite, lack of energy (lethargy), and feeling itchy. However, the most common symptom is the desire to consume non -food items such as paper, clay, ice, etc., a condition known as pica. Causes of the iron deficiency Iron deficiency infection is caused by a number of factors (Burns, 2017), some of which include; Hemolysis- this is the damage of the red blood cells in the body as a result of inherited conditions or infections such as thalassemia and sickle cell anemia. It can as well be caused by stressors such as drugs, spider or snake venom, infections, and certain foods among others. Massive blood loss- blood in the body often contains red blood cells that store the iron. In other words, any loss of blood leads to loss of the iron in the body, a condition that is often common with heavy periods in women hence causing iron deficiency during menstruation. On the other hand, there can be slow chronic blood loss in the body caused by infections such as colorectal cancer, peptic ulcer, as well as colon polyp that can cause iron-deficiency anemia (Godyn et al., 2016). On the other hand, it is noted that conditions such as hemorrhoids, stomach inflammation, use of NSAIDS drugs like aspirin can as well lead to gastritis and ulcers hence leading to iron-deficiency anemia. Iron deficiency in the diet- the body often gets iron from the food we eat. Little iron in the diet will hence lead to its deficiency in the body (Rahim, 2017). Hence, proper infant and children development and growth require food that is rich in iron elements such as eggs, green vegetables, meat, and iron-fortified meals. Poor absorption of iron in the body- during digestion and absorption of food in the body, the absorption of irons often take place in the small intestine. As a result, the occurrence of an intestinal disorder such as celiac disease can affect the ability of the small intestine to absorb the irons from the digested food. At the same time, surgical operations that lead to the removal of certain sections of the small intestines may as well affect the iron absorption process in the body thus leading to iron-deficiency anemia. Pregnancy- iron-deficiency anemia can occur in many pregnant women who do not take iron supplements. During pregnancy, there is a need for the iron stores in the body to serve the increase in the volume of the blood as well as the primary source of hemoglobin for the growing fetus. Therefore, there is a need for effective consumption of iron rich foods as well as iron supplements during pregnancy. Useful Resources and Key considerations According to a survey by the IndiaSpend Analysis, Iron-deficiency anemia is one of the primary causes of disability in India. Different studies indicate that the high number of recorded infections is due to poverty, poor sanitation, malnutrition, and imbalanced vegetarian diet that has led to the widespread increase of the infection that has negatively impacted the workforce of India as pointed out by PN (2016). The same survey denotes that shortage of mineral iron is the top factor for disability. However, the latest statistics indicate a decline of 24% of the anemic disability cases since 2012 but remains the highest country with most of its population affected with the condition as indicated in Figure 1. In a study, it is reported that the disability in this context encompasses a wider meaning with a major concern towards the absence of good health in the body (Rahim, 2017). It involves factors such as improper self-care, mobility, discomfort and pain, depression and anxiety, cogn itive impairments, and participation in the daily activities. Figure 1: Statistical Analysis of Disability due to Anaemia (adopted from Harikishore et al. 2017) In a systematic review, it is found that iron deficiency is one of the major problems affecting individuals across different age groups in India (Pawelczyk Sekhar, 2017). The study denotes an estimation of 20% maternal deaths that have a direct relationship with anemia and a 50% direct association with the infection. Iron-deficiency is very common among children below three years old who form 78.9%. Additionally, 55% of women and 24% of men are as well infected according to the National Family Health Survey (Hurrell, 2016). With the high deaths that are directly related to anemia in India, the reason why it still exists becomes a major concern despite India being among the first countries to launch the National Nutritional Anemia Prophylaxis programs in the late 1990s. However, there are massive economic concerns that can be related to the issue making it a widespread challenge in the region. Issues such as defective absorption of iron, insufficiency in the dietary intake of iron, increase in the iron requirements as a result of an increase in lactation and pregnancies, infection frequencies among infants, poor iron reserves during birth are major escalation factors Hassan, (Salim Humayun, 2017). On the other hand, excessive psychological loss of blood during pregnancy and adolescent are among the major courses of the high prevalence of iron deficiency in India as well as other organizational and pragmatic issues (Hurrell, 2016). National programs that deals with iron-deficiency anemia in India In a systematic review, it is reported that India still stands very low on the list of countries that have adopted strategies dealing with the challenges that arise as a result of iron deficiency (Pawelczyk Sekhar, 2017). For instance, the study denotes that it is the 170th out of the 180th nations ranked for iron deficiency anemia among the women, 120th out of 130 for wasting infants and children for five years, and 114th out of 132 for stunting children below five years as denoted by the Global Nutrition Report (2016). However, many reviews denote that poverty and malnutrition directly cause iron-deficiency in India. As a result, the Indian government has allocated $5.5 billion channeled directly to different nutritional schemes such as the National Health Mission, National Guidelines for Control or Iron Deficiency Anaemia, and the Integrated Child Development Scheme. However, this is $700 million below the estimated requirement, a factor that limits the success of the programs ad opted to curb the issue. The government is also spending over $30 billion on other related schemes with a focus on improving the general nutrition programs such as the public nutrition systems which have not been quite successful due to some leaks in the management of the systems (Pawelczyk Sekhar, 2017). For instance, the study denotes that more than half of the food dispatched to the affected communities never reaches the beneficiaries. With examples from other developing nations, the Global Nutrition Report denotes that India should learn from other low-income nations such as Peru, Vietnam, Brazil, and Ghana that have recorded a rapid improvement in the reduction of malnutrition cases in their communities. For instance, the Zero Hunger strategy in Brazil has enabled easy food access as well as the strengthening of small farmers with a focus on increasing the social mobilization and income generation can as well be adopted in India to help to insure diet improvement as (Hassan, Salim, Humayun, 2017). National Iron+ Initiative- According to Rocha (2014), anemia is one of the primary public health challenges in India yet with little comprehensive strategies to help in curbing the challenge. As a result, there are few initiatives take by both government and non-governmental organizations with a focus on reducing the related infections. However, very critical age groups have not been engaged in this strategy, an aspect that has led to the development of many programs that can help in bridging the identified gaps (Akbari et al., 2017). The National Iron+ Initiative is one such program that focuses on comprehensively looking at Iron Deficiency Anaemia across all age groups within the Indian communities including the women and adolescent in reproductive age group but are not lactating or pregnant. The organization is trusted with the responsibility of scheduling IFA supplementations and administration of prescribed dosages under a direct supervision program to ensure the targeted affect ed population benefit from the program (Ching-Tzu et al., 2016). With the help of the National Iron+ Initiative, children of between the ages of 6 months to 5 years now enjoy a bi-weekly schedule of IFA supplementation with children in classes one to five in the government aided schools being supervised by the teachers. At the same time, denotes the adolescent from class six to seven receive weekly IFA supplementation within the school (Starzynski, 2017). In reference to the National Guidelines for Control or Iron Deficiency Anaemia, the National Iron+ Initiative has four primary functions. These include; Laying out IFA supplementation protocols as a preventive strategy across the life cycle Bringing to the attention of the program managers issues concerning health and health related issues that have serious negative consequences towards iron deficiency anemia for the health of the mental, economic, and mental productivity of the Indian communities (Akbari et al., 2017). Defining the minimum standard of treatment protocols focused on the facility based management of severe, mild, and moderate deficiency conditions that are segregated by different levels of care Ensuring a broad identification platform of delivering services and indicating roles of service providers The above guidelines were developed with consideration of the scientific evidence while having consultations with different domain experts. The program builds on the past or continuing work on the control and prevention of anemia in India. The Indian government as well ensures that the program guidelines are developed in the context of the present strategies and policies of health, population, and nutrition (Szczepanska et al., 2017). As a result, the program help in identifying comprehensive interventions and strategies for the high-risk groups such as young children, infants, women in reproductive stages, adolescent girls, breastfeeding women, and the population at large. Ministry of Women and Child Development Program (MWCD)-The Indian National Nutrition Policy with the primary objective of the operationalization of multi-sectoral strategies with the aim of addressing different nutritional problems. On this basis, the National Plan of Action for Nutrition (NPAN) has designed different strategies for different ministries in and departments in the Indian government. At the same time, a national nutrition mission has been put in place with the aim of addressing nutrition issues through different mission mode approaches under the management of the MWCD (Ministry of Women and Child Development) (Khanal, Adhikari, Karkee, 2014). The MWCD schemes help in ensuring supplementary nutrition is provided to both lactating and pregnant women at a small rate that can be afforded by the majority of the Indian population. The program is aimed at providing 600Kcal as well as 18-20 grams of protein while providing supplementary nutrition, preschool education, and immu nization for children for the children between one to six years of age. The MWCD program also ensures that supplementary food is provided to children in the primary school through the national program of Nutritional Support to the primary education levels. The program also provides supplementary nutrition to adolescent girls in the form of hot cooked meals or takes home rations (Hassan, Salim, Humayun, 2017). Despite the fact that supplementation of diet with IFA has been among the programs in the Government of Indian programs, research shows that its levels of intake are still very low. For instance, less than 22% of pregnant women reported their IFA for more than 90 days during their pregnancy consumption (Khanal, Adhikari, Karkee, 2014). The same study as well denotes that there are significant challenges facing the effort to reach at-risk population and improving nutrition compliance in both women and children. Conclusion Iron deficiency anemia is among the major public health concerns affecting a larger population in India, especially among the children. As a result, this paper is a review of an attempt of examining the current burden of anemia in India in relation to the socioeconomic factors as well as the strategy of the government in finding a solution to the issue. The report reflects that poverty and malnutrition are the primary causes of iron deficiency with most women affected due to blood loss. From the analysis, it is evident that iron deficiency anemia has a very devastating effect on health, mental, and physical productivity affecting the quality of life among the vulnerable population in India. As a result, there has been the adoption of different programs have been developed and adopted as a concern for managing anemia since it has translated to significant morbidities for the consequent social and economic losses for the affected individuals. References Akbari, M., Moosazadeh, M., Tabrizi, R., Khatibi, S. R., Khodadost, M., Heydari, S. T., ... Lankarani, K. B. (2017). 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