Özet:

Aim: Iron, vitamin B12 and folate deficiency are common micronutrient deficiencies all over the world especially in children. Iron, vitamin B12 and folate play a role in body metabolism, cell division and differentiation, regulation of the immune system, bone development, perception and intelligence function by entering the structure of many enzymes. In the study, we investigated the prevalence of serum iron, vitamin B12 and folate deficiency in children. Materials and Methods: Serum iron level, iron binding capacity, ferritin, vitamin B12, folate level and complete blood count were studied in a total of 392 children aged 6-14 years who applied to the General Pediatric Polyclinic of Zonguldak Bulent Ecevit University Medical Faculty Hospital. A questionnaire including various parameters such as socioeconomic level, diet, physical development, education level was organized Results: Our study was done with 223 girls and 169 boys, a total of 392 children. Iron deficiency (ID) was found in 60.5% of the cases, vitamin B12 deficiency in 33.4%, folate deficiency and insufficiency in 7.6%. When the cases were examined in two groups as 6-10 years (n = 211) and 11-14 years (n = 181), a statistically significant difference was found in the prevalence of vitamin B12 deficiency in adolescents (p <0.001). While folate deficiency and insufficiency were found in 10.2% of the cases with ID, it was found at a rate of 3.9% in those without ID. This difference was statistically significant (p = 0.037). Conclusion: Nutritional deficiencies may not always have clinical complaints. In our study, we found that these deficiencies were common in children. The aim should be to detect deficiencies before clinical findings appear

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