Nutritional status among primary school children in rural Sri Lanka; a public health challenge for a country with high child health standards

Table 6 Distribution of anemia among school children aging 5 to 10 years in North Central province, Sri Lanka by age and sex

	Age (months)	Total number studied	Normal ^a		Mild anemia		Moderate anemia
	Age (months)	Total number studied	n	%	n	%	n	%
Male	61–71	204	152	74.5	29	14.2	22	10.8
	72–83	563	461	81.9	56	9.9	46	8.2
	84–95	470	368	78.3	54	11.5	48	10.2
	96–107	439	377	85.9	38	8.7	24	5.5
	108–119	406	350	86.2	23	5.7	33	8.1
	120–131	146	128	87.7	6	4.1	12	8.2
	Total	2228	1836	82.4	206	9.2	185	8.3
Female	61–71	182	143	78.6	20	11.0	19	10.4
	72–83	505	391	77.4	67	13.3	47	9.3
	84–95	455	371	81.5	41	9.0	43	9.5
	96–107	444	388	87.4	40	9.0	16	3.6
	108–119	402	360	89.6	28	7.0	14	3.5
	120–131	180	157	87.2	12	6.7	11	6.1
	Total	2168	1810	83.5	208	9.6	150	6.9

^a Classification is based on WHO recommendations for childhood anemia. Normal = <12 g/dL, mild anemia 11.9-10.0 g/dL, moderate anemia 10.9-80 g/dL, severe anemia <8 g/dL

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