The Relationship between Anthropometric Factors and Iron Deficiency Anemia Factors

Background: Iron deficiency is often observed in obese individuals. The prevalence of obesity has increased at an epidemic rate. A few small studies have noted a possible association between iron deficiency and obesity. The purpose of the study has been determined relationship between anthropometric including body mass index and the size of abdomen and iron-shortage anemia. Materials and Methods: Descriptive, analytical, and cross sectional methods of research have been applied in the study. The instruments used to collect the data were a set of organized items in the questionnaire and a checklist contained the measurement of abdominal obesity, height, weight, BMI, the results of ferritin levels, hemoglobin, hematocrit, and TIBC and MCV. The tools were validated via content validity and test-retest. The participants were the staff (n=300) of Hamadan branch, Islamic Azad university, Iran, who were selected via census sampling technique. To analyze the data, descriptive statistics and inferential statistics, that is, chi-square, Pearson correlation coefficient, and ANOVA were run using SPSS software. Results: 48.4% had overweight and 43.9% had various degrees of general obesity. 45.7% of women and 1.9% of men suffered from abdominal obesity. 3.2% of men had ferritin levels less than 20ng/dl and 79.2% of them had high levels of TIBC, while 31.5% of women had ferritin serum less than 12ng per dl and 73.9% of them had high TIBC. There was a significant relationship between abdominal obesity and TIBC, HB, HCT, and ferritin serum (p < 0.0005). Conclusion: The results of this study indicate the high prevalence of overweight, obesity, and abdominal obesity and their relationship with iron deficiency anemia. These are non-communicable disease, which are directly related to the lifestyle.