Journal of Food Processing & Technology

Analysis of the nutritional status of children aged 0 to 10 years in Saudi Arabia

6^th Global Summit and Expo on Food & Beverages

August 03-05, 2015 Orlando-FL, USA

Abdulaziz I Al-Othaimeen

Posters-Accepted Abstracts: J Food Process Technol

Abstract:

Malnutrition, Anaemia, Obesity and Oral health seem to be major health issues in Saudi children, but more data is needed to validate this statement. Malnutrition is still prevalent. In Riyadh, in 1999, 4.5% of children were underweight, 6.1% were wasted and 8.8% were stunted (13). However, the prevalence of malnutrition has decreased since 1993. No precise national data has been identified but 2 regional studies indicate an anaemia prevalence of around 10-11%. A 2000 review on the nutritional status of the Saudi population concludes that anaemia is a major health problem in Saudi Arabia. Obesity is becoming a major health disorder in Saudi children: ~10% of children less than 6 years old were obese in 1998 (45, 46). This has consequences for the health of children with higher risks of diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and hyperlipidemia. Oral health is a major health disorder in Saudi Arabia among young children due to bad oral hygiene and dietary habits such as drinking soft drinks. Diarrhoea, intestinal parasitic infections and gastritis are important health disorders in Saudi children example the prevalence of intestinal parasites is 34.4% in Riyadh (35).