Abstract
Recent evidence suggests that iron in human milk has a high bio-availability and that breast fed term infants are protected from developing iron deficiency during the first 6 months of life. Iron nutrition was determined in healthy term infants of low socioeconomic condition receiving breast milk as the only milk source for 4, 6 and 9 months (60, 70 and 31 subjects respectively) and compared with infants fed non fortified cow's milk. At 4 months, breast fed infants had a better iron nutrition status presenting significant differences with the control group in serum iron (69* ± 36 vs 43 ± 16 ug/dl, p<.005), transferrin saturation (18.4 ± 10.3 vs 11.2 ± 4.4%, p<.005) free erythrocyte protoporphyrin (76 ± 23 vs 88 ± 31 ug/dl RBC, p <.025) and serum ferritin (44.7# ± 1.1 vs 22.3 ± 1.1 ug/ml, p <.005). These differences no longer existed at 6 and 9 months of age, when both groups had a high incidence of iron deficiency. This study indicates that chilean infants fed breast milk need iron supplementation after 4 months of age.
* mean ± 1 SD
# geometric mean ± 1 SEM
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Hertrampf, E., Dinamarca, M., Llaguno, S. et al. 79 IRON NUTRITION IN CHILEAN BREAST FED INFANTS. Pediatr Res 15, 196 (1981). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198102000-00136
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198102000-00136
