Introduction:

The main cause of anemia in preschoolers is dietary iron deficiency, nonetheless there are other associated and unevaluated conditions.

Objective:

To estimate the prevalence of anemia and iron deficiency in children aged 6 to 59 months and the association with inflammation, overall overweight, food intake and maternal educational level.

Methods:

A national cross-sectional study was carried out, with determinations of hemoglobin, ferritin, transferrin receptors, C-reactive protein and alpha-1 acid glycoprotein. The nutritional status, diet and educational level of the mother were evaluated.

Results:

One thousand four hundred and seventeen children were studied. The prevalence of anemia was 22.5%, 35.6% of iron deficiency, and 13.3% of erythropoietic dysfunction. 37.6% of cases presented inflammation and 7.5% presented global overweight prevalence. Anemia was associated with iron deficiency OR = 2.07(1.45-2.97) and inflammation OR = 2.01(1.45-2.78). No associations were found between anemia and iron deficiency with overall overweight. Low consumption of eggs OR = 1.84 (95% CI 1.39-2.43), fruits OR = 1.73 (95% CI 1.29-2.34) and legumes OR = 1.68 (CI 95% 1.25-2.25) were found to be a risk factor for anemia. The logistic regression analysis showed that anemia was associated with the group under two years of age.

Conclusions:

Anemia and iron deficiency classify as moderate public health problems associated with inflammation. The group under two years of age and low fruit consumption turned out to be a risk factor and overall overweight turned out to be a protective factor for anemia.

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