Worldwide prevalence of anaemia 1993-2005

Overview

Anaemia is a public health problem that affects populations in both rich and poor countries. Its primary cause is iron deficiency, but a number of other conditions, such as malaria, parasitic infection, other nutritional deficiencies, and haemoglobinopathies are also responsible, often in combination.

The WHO Global Database on Anaemia can be used to describe the nutritional status of populations and to identify the needs for interventions to prevent and control anaemia. It also allows to track trends over the years and to show progress toward the goal of anaemia reduction adopted by the World Summit for Children. The indicator used in haemoglobin concentration.

This report on the WHO Global Database on Anaemia provides estimates of the prevalence of anaemia at country, regional and global levels for all population groups (preschool-age children, school-age children, pregnant and non-pregnant women, men, and elderly).