Social determinants of iron supplementation among women of reproductive age: A systematic review of qualitative data

Maternal and Child Nutrition

Volumn 8, Issue 1, 2012, Pages 1-18

  Nagata, Jason M ^a   Gatti, Lisa R ^b   Barg, Frances K ^b  

^a UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA   (United States)

^b UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA   (United States)

Author keywords

Anaemia; Iron; Maternal nutrition; Qualitative methods; Social determinants of health; Systematic review

Indexed keywords

FOLIC ACID; HERBACEOUS AGENT; IRON;

ABNORMAL FECES; ANEMIA; APPETITE; ATTITUDE TO HEALTH; CULTURAL FACTOR; DOSAGE SCHEDULE COMPARISON; DRUG COST; DRUG USE; DRUG WITHDRAWAL; EVIDENCE BASED MEDICINE; GASTROINTESTINAL SYMPTOM; GYNECOLOGIC CARE; HEALTH CARE ACCESS; HEALTH CARE PERSONNEL; HEALTH EDUCATION; HEALTH PROGRAM; HOUSEHOLD; HUMAN; IRON THERAPY; MIDWIFE; MOTIVATION; NAUSEA AND VOMITING; PATIENT COMPLIANCE; PREGNANT WOMAN; PREPREGNANCY CARE; PRIORITY JOURNAL; QUALITY CONTROL; REVIEW; SOCIAL ASPECT; SOCIAL NETWORK; SOCIAL SUPPORT; SYSTEMATIC REVIEW;

ADULT; ANEMIA, IRON-DEFICIENCY; DIETARY SUPPLEMENTS; EDUCATIONAL STATUS; FEMALE; HEALTH SERVICES ACCESSIBILITY; HUMANS; IRON, DIETARY; NUTRITIONAL REQUIREMENTS; PREGNANCY; PREGNANCY COMPLICATIONS; SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT; SOCIOECONOMIC FACTORS; WOMEN'S HEALTH;

EID: 83055177148     PISSN: 17408695     EISSN: 17408709     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1111/j.1740-8709.2011.00338.x     Document Type: Review

References (47)

1. Al-Janabi H., Coast J. & Flynn T.N. (2008) What do people value when they provide unpaid care for an older person? A meta-ethnography with interview follow-up. Social Science & Medicine 67, 111-121.
2. Allen L.H. (2000) Anemia and iron deficiency: effects on pregnancy outcome. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 71, 1280S-1284S.
3. Atkins S., Lewin S., Smith H., Engel M., Fretheim A. & Volmink J. (2008) Conducting a meta-ethnography of qualitative literature: Lessons learnt. BMC Medical Research Methodology 8, 21.
4. Barbour R.S. (2001) Checklists for improving rigour in qualitative research: A case of the tail wagging the dog? British Medical Journal 322, 1115-1117.
5. Beard J.L. (2000) Effectiveness and strategies of iron supplementation during pregnancy. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 71, 1288S-1294S.
6. Beaton G.H. & McCabe G.P. (1999) Efficacy of intermittent iron supplementation in the control of iron deficiency anaemia in developing countries. The Micronutrient Initiative: Ottowa.
7. de Benoist B., Mclean E., Egli I. & Cogswell M. (2008) Worldwide Prevalence of Anaemia 1993-2005: WHO Global Database on Anaemia. World Health Organization: Geneva.
8. Britten N., Campbell R., Pope C., Donovan J., Morgan M. & Pill R. (2002) Using meta-ethnography to synthesise qualitative research: a worked example. Journal of Health Services Research & Policy 7, 209-215.
9. Cavalli-Svorza T., Berger J., Smitasiri S. & Viteri F. (2005) Weekly iron-folic acid supplementation of women of reproductive age: impact overview, lessons learned, expansion plans, and contributions toward achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. Nutrition Reviews 63, S152-S158.
10. Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP) (2002) Ten questions to help you make sense of qualitative research[Online]. Available: [Accessed 4 June 2011].
11. Dixon-Woods M., Fitzpatrick R. & Roberts K. (2001) Including qualitative research in systematic reviews: opportunities and problems. Journal of Evaluation in Clinical Practice 7, 125-133.
12. Ejidokun O.O. (2000) Community attitudes to pregnancy, anaemia, iron and folate supplementation in urban and rural Lagos, south-western Nigeria. Midwifery 16, 89-95.
13. Galloway R., Dusch E., Elder L., Achadi E., Grajeda R., Hurtado E. etal. (2002) Women's perceptions of iron deficiency and anemia prevention and control in eight developing countries. Social Science & Medicine 55, 529-544.
14. Galloway R. & McGuire J. (1994) Determinants of compliance with iron supplementation: Supplies, side effects, or psychology? Social Science & Medicine 39, 381-390.
15. Ghanekar J., Kanani S. & Patel S. (2002) Toward better compliance with iron-folic acid supplements: Understanding the behavior of poor urban pregnant women through ethnographic decision models in Vadodara, India. Food and Nutrition Bulletin 23, 65-72.
16. Higgins J. & Green S. eds. (2008) Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions Version 5.0.1. The Cochrane Collaboration [Online].
17. Hunt J.M. (2002) Reversing productivity losses from iron deficiency: The economic case. Journal of Nutrition 132, 794S-801S.
18. Hyder S.M.Z., Persson L.A., Chowdhury A.M.R. & Ekstrom E. (2002) Do side-effects reduce compliance to iron supplementation? A study of daily- and weekly-dose regimens in pregnancy. Journal of Health, Population and Nutrition 20, 175-179.
19. International Nutritional Anemia Consultative Group (1998) Guidelines for the use of iron supplements to prevent and treat iron deficiency anaemia. ILSI Press: Washington DC.
20. Jefferds M.D. (2002) Concepts of iron deficiency anemia and public health measures in rural Costa Rica. Social Science & Medicine 55, 1143-1156.
21. Kanal K., Busch-Hallen J., Cavalli-Sforza T., Crape B. & Smitasiri S. (2005) Weekly Iron-Folic Acid Supplements to Prevent Anemia among Cambodian Women in Three Settings: Process and Outcomes of Social Marketing and Community Mobilization. Nutrition Reviews 63, S126-S133.
22. Kavle J.A., Stoltzfus R.J., Witter F., Tielsch J.M., Khalfan S.S. & Caulfield L.E. (2008) Association between anaemia during pregnancy and blood loss at and after delivery among women with vaginal births in Pemba Island, Zanzibar, Tanzania. Journal of Health, Population, and Nutrition 26, 232-240.
23. Khan N.C., Thanh H.T., Berger J., Hoa P.T., Quang N.D., Smitasiri S. etal. (2005) Community mobilization and social marketing to promote weekly iron-folic acid supplementation: a new approach toward controlling anemia among women of reproductive age in Vietnam. Nutrition reviews. 63, S87-S94.
24. Malpass A., Shaw A., Sharp D., Walter F., Feder G., Ridd M. etal. (2009) 'Medication career' or 'Moral career'? The two sides of managing antidepressants: A meta-ethnography of patients' experience of antidepressants. Social Science & Medicine 68, 154-168.
25. Milman N. (2011) Anemia-still a major health problem in many parts of the world! Annals of Hematology 90, 369-377.
26. Noblit G. & Hare R. (1988) Meta-ethnography: Synthesizing Qualitative Studies. Sage: Newbury Park, CA.
27. Noyes J. & Popay J. (2007) Directly observed therapy and tuberculosis: How can a systematic review of qualitative research contribute to improving services? A qualitative meta-synthesis. Journal of Advanced Nursing 57, 227-243.
28. Oppenheimer S.J. (2001) Iron and its relation to immunity and infectious disease. Journal of Nutrition 131, 616S-635S.
29. Paulino L.S., Angeles-Agdeppa I., Etorma U.M., Ramos A.C. & Cavalli-Sforza T. (2005) Weekly iron-folic acid supplementation to improve iron status and prevent pregnancy anemia in Filipino women of reproductive age: the Philippine experience through government and private partnership. Nutrition Reviews 63, S109-S115.
30. Peña-Rosas J.P. & Viteri F.E. (2006) Effects of routine oral iron supplementation with or without folic acid for women during pregnancy. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews (3), CD004736.
31. Sandelowski M., Docherty S. & Emden C. (1997) Qualitative metasynthesis: issues and techniques. Research in Nursing & Health 20, 365-371.
32. Seck B.C. & Jackson R.T. (2008) Determinants of compliance with iron supplementation among pregnant women in Senegal. Public Health Nutrition 11, 596-605.
33. Solar O. & Irwin A. (2009) A Conceptual Framework for Action on the Social Determinants of Health. World Health Organization: Geneva.
34. Stoltzfus R.J. (2001) Iron deficiency anemia: reexamining the nature and magnitude of the public health problem. Summary: implications for research and programs. Journal of Nutrition 131, 2S-2, 697S-700S.
35. Tessema J., Jefferds M.E., Cogswell M. & Carlton E. (2009) Motivators and barriers to prenatal supplement use among minority women in the United States. Journal of the American Dietetic Association 109, 102-108.
36. Tita A.T.N., Selwyn B.J., Waller D.K., Kapadia A.S. & Dongmo S. (2005) Evidence-based reproductive health care in Cameroon: Population-based study of awareness, use and barriers. Bulletin of the World Health Organization 83, 895-903.
37. Viteri F.E. (1994) The consequences of iron deficiency and anemia in pregnancy of maternal health, the foetus and the infant. SCN News 11, 14-17.
38. Viteri F.E. (1996) Weekly compared with daily iron supplementation. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 63, 610-612.
39. Viteri F.E. (1997) Iron supplementation for the control of iron deficiency in populations at risk. Nutrition Reviews 55, 195-209.
40. Viteri F.E., Xunian L., Tolomei K. & Martin A. (1995) True absorption and retention of supplemental iron is more efficient when iron is administered every three days rather than daily to iron-normal and iron-deficient rats. Journal of Nutrition 125, 82-91.
41. WHO (2001) Iron deficiency anaemia: assessment, prevention, and control. World Health Organization: Geneva.
42. WHO (2002) WHO traditional medicine strategy 2002-2005. World Health Organization: Geneva.
43. WHO (2007) Assessing the Iron Status of Populations, Second edn, World Health Organization: Geneva.
44. WHO (2008) Closing the gap in a generation: health equity through action on the social determinants of health. Final report of the Commission on Social Determinants of Health. World Health Organization: Geneva.
45. WHO (2009) Weekly iron-folic acid supplementation (WIFS) in women of reproductive age: its role in promoting optimal maternal and child health position statement. World Health Organization: Geneva.
46. WHO (2011) Iron deficiency anemia[Online]. Available: [Accessed 4 June 2011].
47. Wulff M. & Ekstrom E.C. (2003) Iron supplementation during pregnancy in Sweden: To what extent is the national recommendation followed? Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica 82, 628-635.