Vitamin A status and related nutritional

Nutrition surveys carried out in the early sixties revealed the existence of 'vitamin A malnutrition, manifested in clinical deficiency symptoms as well as low serum levels of the vitamin and its precursors in a significant portion of the children of East Jerusalem. It was the purpose of this study to examine the vitamin A status as well as other nutritional parameters usually associated with hypovitaminosis A as they exist today. Fifty-four children, 5.5 years of age, from low socioeconomic families, were selected for this study. The children were examined for clinical signs of malnutrition and measurements were taken of their heights, weights, and triceps skin-fold thickness. Blood samples were assayed for hemoglobin, as was serum for retinol and carotenoid levels. The mothers of the children were interviewed for recall data on their families' food consumption. The results showed no clinical signs of vitamin A or other nutritional deficiencies in the children examined. However, blood levels of vitamin A and its precursors were how and generally comparable to those found in the early sixties. The absence of clinical symptoms is explained by an adequate protein-calorie nutrition as evident from food consumption data and an improved growth rate of the children. A significant number of the children examined were still underweight and underheight for their age. Am. J. C'lin. Nutr. 26: 1229-1233, 1973. Hypovitaminosis A is a widespread problem in many parts of the world. Its sequelae, mainly the ocular manifestations leading to blindness, are of serious concern to public health authorities. It occurs against the background of poverty, and its epidemiology is analogous to that of protein-calorie malnutrition. A change in the economic level of a community might influence the prevalence of hypovitaminosis A. Studies by Darby and Pharaon (I), Pharaon et al. (2), McLaren et al.(3), and Patwardhan (4), all carried out between 1962 and 1965, showed vitamin A deficiency to be a significant problem in various parts of Jordan and in the eastern section of Jerusalem. Patwardhan (4) reported that in randomly selected families from Amman and Jerusalem, over 8% of the children below 6 years of age had xerophthal- mia and sequelae. Pharaon et al. (2) found that 5% of the children below the age of five fell within the "deficient" category, and an additional 39% fell within the "low" category according to ICNND criteria (5) for vitamin A levels in the serum. The children were also found to be severely underweight and underheight, according to Iowa standards, with almost 6% of the boys and 12% of the girls suffering from some form of