Summary:
The average anaemic children in the metros are below 48%.Doctors say anaemia affects rich and poor alike. Dr Nirmal Chorariya, a paediatrician said, “The source of iron in the vegetarian families is leafy vegetables and jaggery. However, in the young age group, consumption of this two products has come down drastically, which results in iron deficiencies leading to anaemia.”“The iron deficiency leads to poor performance in school and other brain-related activities. Iron is helpful in creating enzymes which help in neuro-transmission process, so when it is not available a child can suffer from multiple problems,” he said.Another paediatrician Dr Chetan Shah said, “Iron deficiency during growing years can compromise with a child’s cognitive abilities. Over 43% of the samples tested between children aged 0 and 10 were found to have lesser than the required amount of Haemoglobin and over 56% of samples tested between children aged 10 and 20 were found to have lesser than the required amount of HB.Moreover, primary schools run by the Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) have the higher number of anaemic children..