Nutritional Anemia in Preschool Children

by Anil Gupta

Overview

The book highlights intricate predisposing factors for pathogenesis of nutritional anemia. It delivers valuable information related to this public health hazard influencing the nutritional health of preschool children. The book is valuable for readers in diverse fields to gain insight of the concept of nutritional anemia in preschool children. Additionally, book furnishes clinical and laboratory methods in a comparative way to assess nutritional anemia. Impact of the disorder on health of preschool children has been covered in a simple language. The book mentions need for interventional strategies for the management of nutritional anemia.

Infants, preschool children and women during pregnancy and lactation are highly susceptible to dietary deficiency of iron, folic acid and cyanocobalamin leading to comparatively, higher predisposition to development of nutritional anemia. The condition has myriad of ill effects on nutritional health of preschool children.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9789811051784
Publisher:	Springer Singapore
Publication date:	08/05/2017
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	233
File size:	646 KB

About the Author

Dr. Anil Gupta is employed as Associate Professor in the Department of Biochemistry at Eklavya Dental College&Hospital, Kotputli, under Rajasthan University of Health Sciences, Jaipur, India. He graduated in Bio-Sciences from Punjab University in 1989. He obtained his Bachelors in Dental Surgery from University of Poona, 1984. Later on, he did his Masters in Biochemistry in 2009 and completed his Ph.D in Biochemistry from SJJT University in 2012. Persistently, past five years, he has been pursuing post-doctoral research, independently, related to nutritional status of children. His 27 publications have been accepted and published. He presented papers in Thapar University, Birla Institute of Technology and Sciences, Punjabi University, M.D. University, Arya P.G. College under Kurukshetra University. He has been accorded with merit certificates, scholarships and medals during study. He has teaching experience of more than 11 years comprised of a mentor to dental students, a teacher to pre-medical examination aspirants and students in nursing and polytechnic colleges. He is a Ph.D. guide to research scholars working in distinctive fields like heavy metal contamination of water, drinking water quality analysis and diabetes mellitus and dyslipidemia. He serves as reviewer and member, editorial board in national and international journals.

Table of Contents

Introduction To Nutritional Anaemia In Preschool Children.- Epidemiology Of Nutritional Anemia.- Functional Role Of Iron In Nutritional Anemia.- Functional Role Of Vitamin B12&Folic Acid In Nutritional Anemia.- Functional Role Of Vitamin A In Nutritional Anemia.- Functional Role Of Zinc, Copper And Selenium In Nutritional Anemia.- Impact Of Diarrhoea&Malnutrition In Nutritional Anemia.- Nterventional Strategies.- Bibliography.

Editorial Reviews

Reviewer: Liliane Diab, MD (Children's Hospital Colorado)
Description: This book highlights nutritional anemia as a global health hazard affecting the lives of infants and young children. Almost half of the book is dedicated to iron deficiency anemia, but it also includes chapters on anemia secondary to folic acid and cyanocobalamin deficiencies in addition to the roles of vitamin A and other micronutrients such as zinc, copper, and selenium. Finally, it focuses on malnutrition, diarrhea, infectious diseases, and poverty as predisposing factors that are important to consider in intervention strategies.
Purpose: The stated purpose is the "dissemination of facts, ideas, concepts and knowledge among academicians, research scholars and students." The author accomplishes this goal in certain chapters such as the review of the role of helminthic infections, malaria, helicobacter pylori, and environmental enteropathy. However, some parts fall short. One example is chapter 7, which discusses the effect of iron deficiency on cognitive development. The author references Lozzoff and Georgieff (2006), but omits their more recent and overwhelming research in this field.
Audience: The book is directed at medical professionals, but the information is of limited value to clinicians in practice. For example, in chapter 14, the author lists different modalities for iron supplementation. However, it is not clearly stated that some of the methods are adopted in Bangladesh and India. The author references the World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations from 1998, but omits the more recent 2010 recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) without explanation. It is not clear that the author's interest in nutrition is supported by clinical expertise.
Features: This book includes a considerable list of research about nutritional anemia. Chapter 5 discusses in great detail the different predisposing factors to iron deficiency including cow milk allergy, infections, and geophagy, but it does not adequately cover the role of low intake and certain dietary practices in the development of anemia. In chapter 6, the author lists in detail all the laboratory tests and techniques used to assess iron status in the body, but he does not address how they are used and interpreted in the clinical setting. Other parts of the book contain conflicting recommendations. In chapter 3, the author cites Sarinen et al. (1977) and writes that the high bioavailability of iron in breast milk means that breastfeeding infants may not need routine iron supplementation. In the same chapter, he cites the AAP Committee on Nutrition and recommends supplementing term infants with 1 mg/kg/day starting at four months of age. He offers no comment on which recommendation to take. Indeed, it is unclear whether it is appropriate to give equal weight to research that was done four decades ago. In general, the readability of this book is low. The extensive list of research does not engage readers.
Assessment: Although this book is comprehensive, it lacks the depth that only patient care or clinical research can provide. I found the book to be intriguing and interesting from a historical and academic perspective. A serious shortcoming is the failure to mention the 1,000 days initiative, which is a global movement to improve the health of mothers and children and reduce the incidence of anemia and malnutrition around the world.

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