Intra-individual double burden of overweight and micronutrient deficiencies among Vietnamese women

Vietnamese Living Standard Surveys showed that the rate of overweight and obese in Vietnamese adults doubled between 1992 and 2002, from 2% to 5.5%, respectively with no significant difference in the proportions of overweight/obesity between men and women. Considering the increasing public health concern over the double burden of malnutrition in Vietnam, we investigated micronutrient deficiencies among women of reproductive age according to their Body Mass Index. A transversal study was conducted in 2010 among 1530 women of reproductive age from 19 provinces. Participating women were asked to give a non-fasting blood sample for plasma iron, vitamin A, folate, vitamin B12 and zinc assessment. Although % body fat was associated with haemoglobin, ferritin, retinol and zinc concentrations, BMI category was only associated with marginal vitamin A status (19% among underweight vs 7% among overweight/obese; p