Association of anaemia, vitamin D deficiency and raised HbA1c in children and young people living in deprived areas in the UK

Children growing up in the UK’s most deprived neighbourhoods are more likely to have anaemia, vitamin D deficiency, and raised blood sugar levels—but no one has yet mapped how these three conditions cluster together in the same children. This project will analyse anonymised health records from the Clinical Practice Research Datalink (CPRD) to find out how often anaemia, vitamin D deficiency, and elevated HbA1c (a marker of pre-diabetes) occur together in children and young people living in poverty. The researchers are building on neighbourhood health work already underway in Birmingham’s Sparkbrook community, where local clinics have begun using point-of-care tests (POCT) to diagnose these conditions on the spot. If the analysis confirms strong associations, the next step would be to develop targeted POCT that can screen for all three conditions in a single visit—no lab wait, no separate appointments. That could transform how primary care catches early metabolic and nutritional problems in deprived areas, where children often miss follow-up appointments or face barriers to lab testing. The work is not fundamental science; it is a direct, data-driven step toward more equitable, practical healthcare delivery.