Objective. To determine the prevalence and risk factors for anemia in child bearing age women in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Design. Cross-sectional survey was conducted using two-stage cluster sampling. 25 clusters (primary health care centers (PHCC)) were identified from all over Riyadh, and 45–50 households were randomly selected from each cluster. Eligible women were invited to PHCC for questionnaire filling, anthropometric measurements, and complete blood count. Blood hemoglobin was measured with Coulter Cellular Analysis System using light scatter method. Setting. PHCC. Subjects. 969 (68%) women out of 1429 women were included in the analysis. Results. Mean hemoglobin was 12.35 ( )？g/dL, 95% CI 12.24–12.46 with interquartile range of 1.9. Anemia (Hb <12？g/dL) was present in 40% (390) women. Mean (±SD) for MCH, MCV, MCHC, and RDW was 79.21 (±12.17)？fL, 26.37 (±6.21)？pg, 32.36 (±4.91)？g/dL, and 14.84 (±4.65)%, respectively. Multivariate logistic regression revealed that having family history of iron deficiency anemia (OR 2.91, 95% CI 1.78–4.76) and infrequent intake of meat (OR 1.54, 95%CI 1.15–2.05) were associated with increased risk of anemia, whereas increasing body mass index (OR 0.95, 95% CI 0.92–0.97) was associated with reduced risk of anemia. Conclusion. Women should be educated about proper diet and reproductive issues in order to reduce the prevalence of anemia in Saudi Arabia. 1. Introduction Anemia is a public health issue for developing countries, especially for child bearing age women [1]. The worldwide prevalence of anemia in child bearing age group is quite high (30.2%) [1]. According to World Health Organization (WHO) report, 32.3% nonpregnant women of child bearing age are suffering from anemia in Saudi Arabia [1]. AlQuaiz conducted a hospital-based study and found 37% of women suffering from anemia in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia [2]. Anemia is a multifactor disease and can act both as a risk factor or a consequence of a disease [3]. There are various modifiable and nonmodifiable factors affecting anemia in combination or alone. These may range from ethnicity, gender, age, sociodemographic status, dietary habits, physical and mental health, gynecological/obstetric history, cancers, and anticancerous drugs to genetic makeup [3]. Specific risk factors include deficiency of iron, worm infestation, repeated pregnancies, menorrhagia, postpartum hemorrhage, gastric ulcers, hemorrhoids, intake of aspirin/nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, and pure vegetarian diet [3]. Controversial results from long- and short-term intervention studies on the role
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