Nutritional disorders in Saudi Arabia: a review.

The article reviews the literature on the problem of nutritional disorders in Saudi Arabia. Most of the studies reveal problems of anaemia and a mild to moderate degree of stunting and wasting among preschool children. The causes are, apparently, ignorance and misconception rather than purely economic. Recently, overnutrition has been observed as a problem among the middle and upper class of urban societies. In general, an improvement in the nutritional status of the Saudis has been observed over the last two decades. This is a repercussion of socioeconomic development and improvement in education, dietary habits, and environmental conditions. The time is ripe to create Saudi standards for health and nutrition. These will be used as yardsticks for planning and evaluation of health and nutritional programmes.