Vol. 8, Issue 9 (2019)

Author(s):
Aishwarya V Patil and Dr. Usha Malagi

Abstract:
Iron deficiency is the most widespread and frequent nutritional disorder in the world. It affects a high proportion of children and women in developing countries, with a clear predominance in adolescents and menstruating females. Iron is essential for optimal cognitive function and physical performance, not only as a binding site of oxygen but also as a critical constituent of many enzymes. In symptomatic patients with fatigue or in a population at risk for iron deficiency, a baseline set of blood tests including haemoglobin concentration, haematocrit, mean cellular volume, mean cellular haemoglobin, percentage of hypochromic erythrocytes and serum ferritin levels are important to monitor iron deficiency. For healthy males and females aged >15 years, a ferritin cut-off of 30 µg/l is appropriate. For children from 6–12 years and younger adolescents from12–15 years, cut-offs of 15 and 20 µg/l respectively are recommended. As a first step in treatment, counselling and oral iron therapy is usually combined. Integrating haem and free iron regularly into the diet, looking for enhancers and avoiding inhibitors of iron uptake is beneficial.