Prevalence estimates of vitamin A deficiency in India by NNMB surveys.

It was reported by authors that the prevalence of clinical vitamin A deficiency (VAD) has declined considerably in India, as compared to previous years [2]. However, they found a high prevalence of blood vitamin A deficiency (<20 μg/dL), a criteria for sub-clinical VAD [3]. In their data, 61% preschool children had subclinical VAD, and with this criterion, a public health problem was diagnosed in all the NNMB states surveyed, ranging from 52% in Maharashtra to 88% in Madhya Pradesh. The proportion of severe blood VAD (<10 μg/dL) was 21.5%, again indicating a severe public health problem in all the NNMB states [4].