{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,5]],"date-time":"2026-08-05T08:52:55Z","timestamp":1785919975137,"version":"3.56.0"},"reference-count":48,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"15","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,4]],"date-time":"2026-08-04T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1785801600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["J. Clin. Med.","JCM"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background: Iron deficiency anemia (IDA) is among the most prevalent nutritional disorders worldwide and a growing public health concern among women in Saudi Arabia. Available Saudi evidence remains fragmented, with single-center studies that vary by population, region, and diagnostic criteria. This review evaluated the prevalence of anemia in Saudi Arabia, assessed gender-related differences across the lifespan, and highlighted local determinants and prevention strategies relevant to women. Methods: Eight cross-sectional studies (26,412 participants) reporting anemia prevalence in Saudi individuals aged \u226513 with both-sex data were identified across five databases (2007\u20132024), excluding chronic-disease and under-13 studies. Quality was appraised with the JBI checklist, and because of substantial heterogeneity, findings were synthesized narratively by population group (SWiM guideline) rather than pooled. Results: Anemia was consistently more prevalent in women than men across all population groups and regions. Female prevalence ranged from about 18\u201322% in older and community adults to over 65% in female university students, whereas male prevalence ranged from none detected to 28% in a hospital-based sample. The lowest mean hemoglobin (10.4 g\/dL) occurred in young women. Between study heterogeneity was considerable (I2 &gt; 99%) and persisted within sex subgroups, so findings were synthesized by population group rather than pooled into a single estimate. Conclusions: Anemia remains a significant public health challenge among women in Saudi Arabia, shaped by an interacting set of dietary, sociocultural, hereditary, and health-system determinants specific to the local context. Beyond confirming the female burden, this review consolidates fragmented national evidence, appraises its quality, and translates the findings into targeted recommendations: dietary counseling to address local inhibitors of iron absorption, screening during peak-risk periods, and integration with existing premarital screening and food-fortification infrastructure.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/jcm15156074","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,4]],"date-time":"2026-08-04T13:42:36Z","timestamp":1785850956000},"page":"6074","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Anemia and Iron Deficiency Anemia in Saudi Arabia: A Systematic Review of Prevalence and Contributing Factors"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"15","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6552-6260","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Farjah H.","family":"Algahtani","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Oncology Center, Epidemiology and Public Health Research Chair, Faculty of Medicine, King Saud University\/King Saud Medical City, Riyadh 12373, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-9680-1985","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Hatoon Mohammed","family":"Ezzat","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Ministry of Health, Riyadh 12822, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Mohammed K.","family":"Alabdulaali","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Ministry of Health, Riyadh 12822, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8911-890X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Durria Ahmed Abdulmaged","family":"Ahmed","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Epidemiology and Public Health Research Chair, Faculty of Medicine, King Saud University, Riyadh 11321, Saudi Arabia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,4]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","first-page":"27","article-title":"Impact of iron deficiency anemia on cognitive functions in Saudi Arabia women: Survey-based study","volume":"2","author":"Wajdi","year":"2017","journal-title":"J. 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