OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study is to assess the relationship between breastfeeding and hemoglobin concentration in children under 2 years of age in Itupeva City, SP, Brazil. METHODS: This cross-sectional population-based study was carried out in a representative sample of 254 children under 2 years of age randomly selected in the urban area of Itupeva, SP. The sampling process was done in three stages. The recommendations made by the World Health Organization were used to classify breastfeeding. Hemoglobin concentration was measured by the cyanmethemoglobin method, using the HemoCue system and anemia was defined when hemoglobin concentration was below 11.0g/dL. RESULTS: The prevalence of anemia was 41.7%. Anemia was more frequent among children who were weaned before 6 months (p<0.05). The mean hemoglobin levels of breastfed children were significantly higher among children under 6 months (p<0.05). Children who were exclusively or predominantly breastfed in the first six months of life had higher mean hemoglobin levels than the remaining children (12.3g/dL versus 10.99g/dL; p=0.022). CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that partial or total substitution of breast milk before six months of age was associated with lower mean hemoglobin levels. The high frequency of anemia and the low percentage of children who were exclusively breastfed indicate that programs are needed to control nutritional anemia in this city and to promote exclusive breastfeeding in the first six months.
breast feeding; anemia; infant nutrition physiology; hemoglobins
