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Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2014 May 21;6(5):2023-34.
doi: 10.3390/nu6052023.

Iron stores of breastfed infants during the first year of life

Ekhard E Ziegler  1 , Steven E Nelson  2 , Janice M Jeter  3
Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

Iron stores of breastfed infants during the first year of life

Ekhard E Ziegler et al. Nutrients. .

Abstract

The birth iron endowment provides iron for growth in the first months of life. We describe the iron endowment under conditions of low dietary iron supply. Subjects were infants participating in a trial of Vitamin D supplementation from 1 to 9 months. Infants were exclusively breastfed at enrollment but could receive complementary foods from 4 months but not formula. Plasma ferritin (PF) and transferrin receptor (TfR) were determined at 1, 2, 4, 5.5, 7.5, 9 and 12 months. At 1 month PF ranged from 38 to 752 µg/L and was only weakly related to maternal PF. PF declined subsequently and flattened out at 5.5 months. PF of females was significantly higher than PF of males except at 12 months. TfR increased with age and was inversely correlated with PF. PF and TfR tracked strongly until 9 months. Iron deficiency (PF < 10 µg/L) began to appear at 4 months and increased in frequency until 9 months. Infants with ID were born with low iron endowment. We concluded that the birth iron endowment is highly variable in size and a small endowment places infants at risk of iron deficiency before 6 months. Boys have smaller iron endowments and are at greater risk of iron deficiency than girls.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Plasma ferritin concentrations of mothers and infants one month after birth.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Relationship between maternal and infant plasma ferritin one month after birth (r = 0.081, p = 0.283).
Figure 3
Figure 3
PF of individual infants from 1 to 12 months.
Figure 4
Figure 4
PF of males and females. Differences were statistically significant except at 1 and at 12 months.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Percentile values for PF from 1 to 12 months (males and females combined).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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