Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2007 Feb;12(1):54-63.
doi: 10.1016/j.siny.2006.10.007. Epub 2006 Dec 6.

Iron in fetal and neonatal nutrition

Raghavendra Rao  1 , Michael K Georgieff
Affiliations
Review

Iron in fetal and neonatal nutrition

Raghavendra Rao et al. Semin Fetal Neonatal Med. 2007 Feb.

Abstract

Both iron deficiency and iron excess during the fetal and neonatal period bode poorly for developing organ systems. Maternal conditions such as iron deficiency, diabetes mellitus, hypertension and smoking, and preterm birth are the common causes of perinatal iron deficiency. Long-term neurodevelopmental impairments and predisposition to future iron deficiency that are prevalent in infants with perinatal iron deficiency require early diagnosis, optimal treatment and adequate follow-up of infants at risk for the condition. However, due to the potential for oxidant-mediated tissue injury, iron overload should be avoided in the perinatal period, especially in preterm infants.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

  • Neonatal iron nutrition.
    Rao R, Georgieff MK. Rao R, et al. Semin Neonatol. 2001 Oct;6(5):425-35. doi: 10.1053/siny.2001.0063. Semin Neonatol. 2001. PMID: 11988032
  • Iron requirements of infants and toddlers.
    Domellöf M, Braegger C, Campoy C, Colomb V, Decsi T, Fewtrell M, Hojsak I, Mihatsch W, Molgaard C, Shamir R, Turck D, van Goudoever J; ESPGHAN Committee on Nutrition. Domellöf M, et al. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr. 2014 Jan;58(1):119-29. doi: 10.1097/MPG.0000000000000206. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr. 2014. PMID: 24135983 Review.
  • [Iron requirements during the first 6 months of life].
    Lapillonne A, Becquet O. Lapillonne A, et al. Arch Pediatr. 2017 May;24(5S):5S40-5S44. doi: 10.1016/S0929-693X(17)24008-1. Arch Pediatr. 2017. PMID: 28622781 Review. French.
  • Retention of iron by infants.
    Fomon SJ, Nelson SE, Ziegler EE. Fomon SJ, et al. Annu Rev Nutr. 2000;20:273-90. doi: 10.1146/annurev.nutr.20.1.273. Annu Rev Nutr. 2000. PMID: 10940335 Review.
  • [Control of iron deficiency in developing countries].
    Berger J, Dillon JC. Berger J, et al. Sante. 2002 Jan-Mar;12(1):22-30. Sante. 2002. PMID: 11943635 Review. French.
See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Panel on Micronutrients Subcommittee on Upper Reference Levels of Nutrients and of Interpretation and Uses of Dietary Reference Intakes, and the Standing Committee on the Scientific Evaluation of Dietary Reference Intakes Food and Nutrition Board, Institute of Medicine . Dietary reference intakes for vitamin a, vitamin k, arsenic, boron, chromium, copper, iodine, iron, manganese, molybdenum, nickel, silicon, vanadium and zinc. National Academy Press; Washington, DC: 2001. Iron; pp. 290–393.
    1. Siimes AS, Siimes MA. Changes in the concentration of ferritin in the serum during fetal life in singletons and twins. Early Hum Dev. 1986;13:47–52. - PubMed
    1. Scholl TO. Iron status during pregnancy: setting the stage for mother and infant. Am J Clin Nutr. 2005;81:1218S–22. - PubMed
    1. Steer PJ. Maternal hemoglobin concentration and birth weight. Am J Clin Nutr. 2000;71:1285S–7. - PubMed
    1. Kilbride J, Baker TG, Parapia L, Khoury SA, Shugaidef SW, Jerwood D. Anaemia during pregnancy as a risk factor for iron-deficiency anaemia in infancy: a case-control study in Jordan. Int J Epidemiol. 1999;28:461–8. - PubMed