The role of prophylactic iron utilization and nutrition to prevent iron deficiency in infancy: Prospective cohort study

Abstract

Incorporating iron-rich foods into the diet, adequate breast milk intake, and prophylaxis with iron preparations can prevent iron deficiency anemia (IDA) and iron deficiency (ID) in infancy. This study aimed to elucidate the effects of prophylactic iron preparations, adequate breast milk, and iron-rich supplementary food intake on preventing IDA and ID in infancy. This prospective cohort study included 204 children aged 6 to 24 months who were admitted to the general pediatric outpatient clinic. The patients were divided into groups with and without ID and those with and without IDA. The rates of correct prophylaxis use, adequate breast milk intake, and supplementary food intake were compared. In our study, the ID and IDA rates were 53.9% (n = 110) and 34.8% (n = 71). The rate of recommendation for iron prophylaxis in the 204 patients in our study was 95.1% (n = 194). In our study, the rate of prophylactic use among all patients was 66.7% (n = 136). However, the proportion of patients who correctly used prophylaxis in the entire group was 13.7% (n = 28). The most critical risk factor for developing ID and IDA was lack of prophylaxis (P = .001 and odd ratio: 8.115 for ID and odd ratio: 13.364 for IDA). Prophylaxis emerged as the most critical risk factor for the development of ID and IDA in children aged 6 to 24 months. However, the consumption of more iron-rich foods and breastfeeding for the 1st 6 months is a reliable protective measure against ID and IDA, providing reassurance and confidence in the prevention of these conditions.

Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT06283342.

Keywords: breastfeeding; iron deficiency; iron deficiency anemia; nutrition; prophylaxis.

Figure 1.

Flow diagram of participant inclusion and exclusion. This figure illustrates the process of participant selection for the study, including initial screening, application of inclusion and exclusion criteria, and determination of the final analytical sample. The number of individuals assessed for eligibility, excluded (along with reasons such as missing data or ineligibility), and ultimately included in the final analysis are presented in sequence.