Household iodized salt consumption and iodine status in women of reproductive age in Angola: a cross-sectional study

Background: The first evaluation of iodine nutritional status in Angola was carried out in 2006. This involved a limited survey of urinary iodine concentration (UIC) among school-aged children, conducted in 24 schools within the municipalities of Bié Province. Almost all the children had moderate to high levels of iodine deficiency, with a median UIC below 100 μg/L. In 2004, the Iodine Global Network ranked Angola among the world's ten countries with the highest prevalence of iodine deficiency. This study aims to assess the household level of iodized salt and iodine status in women of reproductive age in Angola. Methods: In 2019, we conducted an observational, descriptive, prospective, cross-sectional study, stratified by altitude, using data from the 2014 Census. A multi-stage, proportional stratified sample selected 2250 households across the country, with 450 per province (Luanda, Cuanza Sul, Bie, Cunene, and Moxico). Descriptive statistics (means, medians, frequencies) were used to characterize the variables. Chi-squared and Kruskal–Wallis tests were employed to assess differences in iodine concentration between strata. Results: Overall, the findings indicated that 74.3% of households used salt containing some iodine, but only 29.2% used salt with adequate iodization (15–40 ppm). The median UIC was 102.2 µg/L in pregnant women and 108.2 µg/L in non-pregnant women. No statistically significant difference was observed between these two groups (p = 0.48). Conclusions: Key findings of the survey showed that the majority of the population in this study is consuming iodized salt below the range recommended by the World Health Organization. This result highlights the need to review the current iodine deficiency disorder control program and develop a country action plan to ensure that over 90 percent of households sustainably use adequately iodized salt and all women of reproductive age have adequate iodine intake.