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To explore the effect of acrylic acid polymerization and NaOH treatment of nylon‐6 on hemoglobin washability.

The nylon‐6 was chemically grafted with acrylic acid and treated with NaOH for the purpose to improve the washability of hemoglobin as a blood protein soil. The structural change before and after graft polymerization was analyzed by X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The moisture regain, the contact angle, and the washability were each measured.

Graft polymerization and NaOH treatment of nylon‐6 changed the surface energy and structure of nylon‐6 causing the washability of hemoglobin to improve. Compared to ungrafted nylon‐6, the hydrophilic properties were increased remarkable by graft polymerization and NaOH treatment, which reulted in the improvement of washability.

Hemoglobin is one of the most difficult soils to remove from the fabric. The paper might be of interest to those who would consider purchasing fabrics that are good at both hydrophilic properties and washability.

The study on washability of hemoglobin as a blood protein soil for grafted fabric has not been reported so far. The results of this research may be used in a basic research for the development of new process which is capable of improving of hemoglobin washability.

The purpose of this paper is to identify locally relevant factors that predict low haemoglobin (Hb < 11.0g/dl) level of pre-school children (6–23 months) in an impoverished area of Ghana.

This study used a cross-sectional analysis of 278 mother–child pairs selected from households using random sampling techniques. Child feeding knowledge, antenatal care (ANC) practices and socio-demographic characteristics were assessed. Hb levels were laboratory determined. This paper modelled the predictors of low Hb in multiple linear regressions.

More than half (53.0%) of the children were female and aged more than one year (60.4%). Mean Hb was 8.5 ± 1.5 g/dl, and the prevalence of anaemia was 95.0%. High child feeding knowledge was independently associated with increased Hb of children after adjusting for the effects of other factors (β = 0.61, p < 0.005), and mothers who made at least four ANC visits during pregnancy had children with high Hb (β = 0.42, p = 0.04). This paper found some evidence of an inverse association between high household wealth and child Hb levels (β= −0.75, p = 0.06).

This study reports a high prevalence of low haemoglobin levels and anaemia in pre-school children in an impoverished area in Ghana. Maternal education on appropriate child feeding and encouragement of antenatal care attendance during pregnancy are key factors to increasing child haemoglobin levels in this setting. Though the current study bridges the knowledge gap between health service education and practice, a large population-based study is required to confirm the finding.

Although anemia during pregnancy is common in the USA, socio-demographic factors make pregnant women enrolled in Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program more vulnerable than the general population. The purpose of this study was to examine the socio-demographic characteristics, blood hemoglobin concentrations, nutrition knowledge and potential associations among these factors in a sample of pregnant women participating in the WIC program.

A cross-sectional study using survey methodology was conducted. In total, 60 pregnant women who were between 12 and 24 weeks of gestation and were carrying a single fetus were recruited from two WIC clinics. Overall nutrition knowledge was assessed with 42 questions arranged into three subscales. Participants’ scores were transformed into tertiles. WIC program records were used to record blood hemoglobin values. Principal component analysis was used to validate the knowledge subscales. Correlational and multivariate regression analyses were conducted to examine the relationship among variables.

Prevalence of anemia among the participants was higher than the national averages. Only 10 per cent of participants scored in the high tertile for nutrition knowledge. Anemia-during-pregnancy knowledge score was positively correlated with blood hemoglobin concentrations (r = 0.23, p < 0.05), and it was also a predictor of blood hemoglobin levels (R2 = 0.364, p = 0.02).

This is the first study to report on the knowledge of anemia, anemia during pregnancy and preventive measures among pregnant women enrolled in the WIC program.

Stunting and being underweight in children are major nutritional problems especially in developing countries. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of egg supplementation on a vitamin and mineral fortification program for growth, cognitive development and hemoglobin in underweight and stunted children.

This was an experimental study using a crossover design conducted in Yogyakarta province, Indonesia. A total of 39 subjects were randomly selected from two community health centers and provided with two types of intervention: vitamin and mineral fortification sprinkle (Taburia) and Taburia with egg supplementation (Taburia PLUS). Each intervention was conducted for three months with one-month of washout period in between interventions.

There were no changes in weight-for-age Z-score in Taburia and Taburia PLUS (all p > 0.05). The height-for-age Z-score was increased in Taburia PLUS (p = 0.022) but not in Taburia (p > 0.05). Hemoglobin level was significantly increased in Taburia (p = 0.039) but not in Taburia PLUS (p > 0.05). There were no significant changes in visual motoric score in Taburia, but there were slight increases in Taburia PLUS (all p > 0.05).

The authors concluded that egg supplementation combined with multivitamins and minerals fortification program, Taburia PLUS, is beneficial to improve linear growth but not hemoglobin in stunted and underweight children.

Iron deficiency anaemia is widely prevalent amongst women and children in India. The aim of the paper is to study the effect of supplementation of micronutrient fortified biscuits on haemoglobin and serum iron levels of adolescent girls (n = 46, 10‐16 years) studying in a government school in Jaipur city, India.

The study was designed to be an intervention study. The intervention was with biscuits fortified with 30 mg iron, 100  μg folic acid, 600  μg vitamin A, 40 mg vitamin C and 150  μg iodine. The iron status of adolescent girls was determined through haemoglobin and serum iron levels.

The results revealed that 95.7 per cent of the adolescent girls suffered from anaemia of which 28.3 per cent had “mild” deficiency and 67.4 per cent had “moderate” deficiency. Anaemia was more prevalent in the older age groups. On supplementation, there was a significant increase in the haemoglobin levels. There was a three‐fold increase in the percentage of adolescent girls in the “normal” category of anaemia from 4.3 to 13.0 per cent and more than two‐fold decrease in the “moderate” category of anaemia from 67.4 to 28.3 per cent. Moreover, 21.7 per cent of the subjects had “normal” levels while the rest (78.3 per cent) had low levels of serum iron; the percentage of adolescent girls in the normal category increased to 93.5 per cent after intervention on the basis of serum iron levels.

Supplementation with iron and folic acid with other micronutrients improved the haemoglobin and serum iron levels of the adolescent girls significantly.

The paper recommends that the school system can be used for micronutrient supplementation to improve the nutritional status of children and adolescents as the students are more regimented here for distribution of nutrient fortified food products.

Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) aims to assist expectant mothers in low-income households. It might address the insufficient prenatal and postnatal healthcare services in rural areas of low-income nations, including Bangladesh. However, the effectiveness of such intervention is rarely investigated in rural Bangladesh. The study aims to explore the impact of CCT on certain health outcomes of expectant mothers in southwestern rural Bangladesh.

The study applied the quasi-experimental Propensity Score Matching method to assess the effectiveness of CCT in health outcomes of expectant mothers. The authors also deployed logistic regression to explore the predictors of three health issues – blood pressure, hemoglobin adequacy and morning sickness.

The Average Treatment Effect shows that the CCT program significantly improves maternal health by lowering the extent of blood pressure and morning sickness and enhancing the hemoglobin adequacy of the CCT recipient women compared to the non-recipient. The result reveals that CCT beneficiary status as well as the education and immunization are positively and significantly associated with normal blood pressure and hemoglobin adequacy. CCT is also a negative predictor of morning sickness. The study recommends to expand the coverage of the CCT program and also emphasize on the improvement of education, training and immunization for rural pregnant women.

To assist in scaling purchasing power and nutritious food for poor pregnant and lactating mothers in low-income households, “Nobojatra” project initiated the CCTs in the southwest region of Bangladesh. Yet, the impact of such cash transfers on their health outcomes is rarely explored in the context of Bangladesh. This study provides evidence regarding the effectiveness of cash transfers to pregnant women of low-income households in rural Bangladesh.

The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/IJSE-08-2022-0512

The purpose of the study was to assess the nutritional and health status of Saharia and non-Saharia women.

The present study was undertaken to compare the nutritional status of Saharia versus non-Saharia women in Baran district, Rajasthan. The sample comprised married non-pregnant and non-lactating (NPNL) women (aged 18-35 years) from three groups, that is, Saharia (n = 100), non-Saharia (Meena tribe, n = 100) and general category (n = 30). The general category women, or reference group, were selected as the control group belonging to the same region. The data included general profile, physical measurement, biochemical hemoglobin estimation, dietary and nutrient intake assessment.

The mean hemoglobin value in Saharia (8.3 ± 1.4 g/dl) and Meena (8.1 ± 1.4 g/dl) women was found to be significantly lower (p < 0.01 at 99 per cent confidence level) than that of the reference group (9.5 ± 1.4 g/dl) and much below the standard value of 12 g/dl. Chronic energy deficiency (BMI < 18.5) was more prevalent in Saharia women (68 per cent) followed by Meena (∼24 per cent) than reference women (7 per cent). Only 29 per cent Saharia women were under normal BMI and majority of the reference group women (77 per cent) and Meena women (72 per cent) had normal BMI (18.5-24). Nutrient and dietary intake of both the tribal women groups were low when compared with suggested levels. In Saharia and Meena women, magnesium and thiamine were significantly higher (p < 0.01) and other nutrients were significantly lower (p < 0.01) than recommended dietary allowances.

Anemia is prevalent in all categories of women. Women’s health is poor especially among Saharia women who are still striving hard to meet the national health standards. A multidimensional approach is required to uplift the health status. Hemoglobin levels of all the women were found to be very low.

Identifying and addressing poor nutritional status in school-aged children is often not prioritized relative to HIV/AIDS treatment. The purpose of this paper is to elucidate the benefits of integrating nutrition (assessment and culturally acceptable food supplement intervention) in the treatment strategy for this target group.

The authors conducted a randomized, double blind pre-/post-intervention trial with 201 HIV-positive children (six to 15 years) in Botswana. Eligibility included CD4 cell counts < 700/mm3 (a marker for the severity of HIV infection), documented treatment with antiretroviral (ARV) drugs, and no reported evidence of taking supplemental food products with one or more added nutrients in the six-month period prior to the study. The intervention (12 months) consisted of two food supplements for ethical reason, one with a higher protein content, bean (bean-sorghum based) group (n=97) and a cereal (sorghum) group (n=104) both of which contained added energy- and micro- nutrients. Anthropometric and biochemical nutritional status indicators (stunting, wasting, underweight, skinfolds for fat and muscle protein reserves, and hemoglobin levels) were compared within and between the bean and the cereal groups pre- and post-intervention separately for children six to nine years and ten to 15 years.

Older children (ten to 15 years) fared worse overall compared to those who were younger (six to nine years) children in anthropometric and protein status indicators both at baseline and post-intervention. Among children six to nine years, the mid arm circumference and blood hemoglobin levels improved significantly in both the bean and cereal groups (p < 0.01 and p < 0.05, respectively). Although the BMI for age z-score and the triceps skinfold decreased significantly in the bean group, the post-intervention subscapular skinfold (fat stores) was significantly higher for the bean group compared to the cereal group (p < 0.05). Among children ten to 15 years, both the bean and the cereal groups also showed improvement in mid arm circumference (p < 0.001), but only those in the bean group showed improvement in hemoglobin (p < 0.01) post-intervention.

Similar significant nutritional status findings and trends were found for both food interventions and age within group pre- vs post-comparisons, except hemoglobin in the older children. Post-intervention hemoglobin levels for the type food supplement was higher for the “bean” vs the “cereal” food in the younger age group. The fact that all children, but especially those who were older were in poor nutritional status supports the need for nutrition intervention in conjunction with ARV treatment in children with HIV/AIDS, perhaps using a scaled up future approach to enhance desired outcomes.

We investigate how career disruptions in terms of job loss may impact morbidity for individuals diagnosed with type 2 diabetes (T2D). Combining unique, high-quality longitudinal data from the Swedish National Diabetes Register (NDR) with matched employer–employee data, we focus on individuals diagnosed with T2D, who are established on the labor market and who lose their job in a mass layoff. Using a conditional difference-in-differences evaluation approach, our results give limited support for job loss having an impact on health behavior, diabetes progression, and cardiovascular risk factors.

The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of calcium supplementation on the iron bioavailability from spirulina (SP) and ferrous sulphate (FE) as reference in iron deficient rats.

Sixty‐four weanling male Sprague‐Dawley rats were first depleted of iron by giving low iron diet for a period of 28 days. The anaemic rats were repleted with iron sources from SP, spirulina+CaCO3 (SPC), FE, FeSO4+CaCO3 (FEC), normal diet (ND), normal diet+CaCO3 (NDC) for 21 days. Iron level of FE supplementation was twice the level of that in SP supplementation. Haematological variables were measured on the last day of preexperimental period and at the end of the repletion period.

Paired samples t‐test at P<0.05 showed that haemoglobin (Hb) and haematocrit (Ht) was increased in all the groups. The diet with added calcium did not significantly inhibit haemoglobin repletion after 21 days in SP and FE. The haemoglobin repletion efficiency (HRE) was significantly higher in rats fed with SP compared to FE (P>0.05). The presence of calcium did not significantly reduce the HRE of these groups.

This paper provides information on effects of additional calcium on iron bioavailability from SP as the intake of dietary supplementation is increasing worldwide.