Introduction: The study aimed to examine anemia prevalence and risk factors in employed women at a medical center compared to unemployed women from a charity center, with anemia defined as hemoglobin <120 g/L and iron deficiency as serum ferritin <30 ng/mL or serum iron <10 mcg/dL.
Material and methods: This cross-sectional study included 651 employed, non-pregnant randomly selected women aged 20-67 years. Participants completed questionnaires on sociodemographic, nutritional, and obstetrical characteristics. Blood indicators such as hemoglobin, serum ferritin, iron, and TIBC were measured.
Results: Out of 651 participants, 395 (60.7%) had anemia/IDA (Hb <120 g/L, ferritin <30 ng/mL, or iron <10mcg/dL), comprising 308 (47.3%) having IDA and 215 (33%) having anemia. Younger age (<40 years) and menorrhagia were individually associated with 1.84- and 2.79- times increased risk of developing anemia in the studied population, respectively. A higher number of shifts and lack of vegetable consumption were found to be significantly prevalent in the anemic group. The prevalence of anemia/IDA among hospital staff and referred women was 60.7% and 43.1%, respectively.
Conclusions: The study emphasized the influence of employment on the prevalence of anemia/IDA among hospital staff compared to unemployed women.
Keywords: Dietary intake; iron deficiency anemia; menorrhagia; occupational health; working women.
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