Double burden of nutritional disorders in young Iranian children: findings of a nationwide screening survey

Objective: To assess the national prevalence of short stature, underweight, overweight and obesity in 6-year-old Iranian children before school entry. Design: Cross-sectional nationwide survey. Setting: Mandatory national screening programme before entrance to elementary school in 2008 in Iran. Subjects: All Iranian children entering public and private elementary schools. Results: The study population comprised 862 433 children (48.4% girls, 77.2% urban resident). Overall, 6.5% of children had short stature, 19.1% were underweight, 12.8% were overweight and 3.4% were obese. There was no significant difference in terms of gender, but considerably larger differences were documented among various provinces. Conclusions: The double burden of nutritional disorders among young children warrants a multi-faceted national policy with evidence-based local programmes. Such planning needs a comprehensive surveillance system and centralized data registry for children's growth.