| Abstract: | Historically, most of Indonesia's interior has been severely iodine-deficient, resulting in high levels of endemic goiter and cretinism. In some interior hamlets during the 1980s, cretinism prevalence was found to be 15%, among the world's highest levels. Early in 1995, a national survey of iodized salt consumption found that half of 220,000 households were using adequately iodized salt, 28% inadequately iodized salt, and the rest noniodized salt. A program to teach primary school students about the existence of and rationale for using iodized salt was launched in West Java and six other provinces in 1995. The program was subsequently expanded in 1996 with the training of 100,000 more teachers nationwide. 95% of children in Indonesia attend primary school. Part of Indonesia's goal to eliminate iodine deficiency disorders by the year 2000, the program involves children testing samples of salt consumed at home for the presence of adequate iodine content. Students and parents are then expected to tell their neighbors about the need for iodized salt and share their school iodine test kit with them. |
