Anemia and Nutritional Status of Syrian Refugee Mothers and Their Children under Five Years in Greater Beirut, Lebanon

Joana Abou-Rizk, Theresa Jeremias, Lara Nasreddine, Lamis Jomaa, Nahla Hwalla, Hani Tamim, Jan Frank and Veronika Scherbaum
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Joana Abou-Rizk: Institute of Nutritional Sciences (140), University of Hohenheim, 70599 Stuttgart, Germany
Theresa Jeremias: Institute of Nutritional Sciences (140), University of Hohenheim, 70599 Stuttgart, Germany
Lara Nasreddine: Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences, American University of Beirut, Beirut 11-0236, Lebanon
Lamis Jomaa: Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences, American University of Beirut, Beirut 11-0236, Lebanon
Nahla Hwalla: Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences, American University of Beirut, Beirut 11-0236, Lebanon
Hani Tamim: Department of Internal Medicine, American University of Beirut, Beirut 11-0236, Lebanon
Jan Frank: Institute of Nutritional Sciences (140), University of Hohenheim, 70599 Stuttgart, Germany
Veronika Scherbaum: Institute of Nutritional Sciences (140), University of Hohenheim, 70599 Stuttgart, Germany

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 13, 1-27

Abstract: The objective was to assess the prevalence of anemia and nutritional status of mothers and children under five years among Syrian refugees in Lebanon and to identify nutritional deficiencies among pregnant, lactating, and non-pregnant non-lactating (NPNLM) mothers. A cross-sectional study was conducted among Syrian refugee mothers with children under five years in Greater Beirut, Lebanon ( n = 433). Data on socio-economic status, maternal health, lifestyle characteristics, dietary intake, anthropometric measurements, and hemoglobin concentrations were collected. The prevalence of anemia was 21.7% among mothers and 30.5% among children. NPNLM with overweight/obesity and an at-risk waist circumference (WC) had 14.7-times and 10.9-times higher odds of anemia than mothers with normal WC and weight. Children of anemic mothers had 2.7-times and 4.4-times higher odds of total and mild anemia than those of non-anemic. Higher odds of mild anemia were found among children of lactating mothers than of NPNLM. A high percent energy intake of total fat and sugar was found among all mothers. Nutritional inadequacy was identified in higher proportions of lactating and pregnant mothers than NPNLM. Our findings highlighted the co-existence of overnutrition and anemia among Syrian refugee mothers and undernutrition among children from the same household. Culture-specific interventions are needed to support maternal nutrition, to ensure the health and wellbeing of their offspring.

Keywords: anemia; obesity; maternal nutrition; nutritional inadequacy; pregnancy; lactation; children under five years; Syrian refugees; Lebanon (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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