Goiter fell 6 times after a decade

The rate of goiter in children in Vietnam is currently 3.6%, down by 6 times compared to 1993, when the anti-iodine deficiency disorder program started.

Using iodized salt to help reduce goitre (Photo: visalco) Dr. Luong Ngoc Khue, Deputy Director of the Department of Health Treatment said, in 1993, more than 22% of children aged 8-10 suffered goiter; 94% of the population is in the area of ​​iodine deficiency.

Since iodine supplementation, the incidence of this disease has dropped sharply to 10% in 2000 and 3.6% by the end of 2005. The coverage of iodized salt has now reached 93%, a 5-fold increase over the previous that's 12 years. The Ministry of Health said that Vietnam has now reached the international goal of eliminating disorders caused by iodine deficiency.

While the Central Highlands provinces are on the list of localities with high iodized salt coverage, HCMC, Ba Ria - Vung Tau, Can Tho, Da Nang . are among the provinces with the lowest index.

Most people know that iodine deficiency causes goiter, but other important harms are very few people are aware of. In 10 people, only 2 people know that iodine deficiency causes mental retardation, one person knows this condition causes miscarriage and premature birth.

For those people who have not used iodized salt, the common reason is that this item is not in their locality or sold intermittently, peddlers do not sell iodized salt, salt has unpleasant taste, or use common salt for convenience of cooking and livestock .

HH