PREVALENCE OF IRON-DEFICIENCY IN CHILDREN AGED 9-24 MO FROM A LARGE URBAN AREA OF ARGENTINA

Argentina has been largely considered as having an adequate diet in terms of iron availability. However, children aged 9-24 mo do not meet requirements from their regular diet. The aim of this study was to assess the incidence of iron deficiency in a representative sample of children living in Greater Buenos Aires. Hematologic indicators were measured in venous blood from 384 children. Weighted incidence of anemia was 46.7%. Mean corpuscular volume was < 73 fL in 28.2% of subjects, free erythrocyte protoporphyrin was > 1.77 μm/L erythrocytes in 57.1%, and serum ferritin was < 12 μg/ L in 60.2%. incidence of two or three abnormal values for iron status indicators was 46.1%. This extremely high incidence of anemia is associated with low iron intakes (5.6 ± 3.5 mg/d, x̄ ± SD), early introduction of cow milk, and low consumption of iron-fortified foods and iron supplements.