Hair zinc levels in healthy and malnourished children

Abstract

In this study the hair zinc levels of 115 healthy subjects, 50 girls and 65 boys, between the age groups 0 to 15 years were determined by using atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The hair zinc levels obtained generally agree with those reported in the literature. The hair zinc levels of the subjects were studied as a function of age, sex and color of hair. It was found that the levels of hair zinc increased as a function of age, whereas no statistically significant differences with respect to sex and color of hair were observed. In a protein-calorie malnourished group of 11 girls and six boys between the ages 0 to 3 years, it was found that the hair zinc levels were significantly higher than a group of healthy subjects of the same age range. In a protein-calorie malnourished group of seven subjects no correlation was found between hair zinc and serum levels.