Dry Cereals Fortified with Electrolytic Iron or Ferrous Fumarate Are Equally Effective in Breast-fed Infants

作者：Ziegler Ekhard E^*; Fomon Samuel J; Nelson Steven E; Jeter Janice M; Theuer Richard C

来源：Journal of Nutrition, 2011, 141(2): 243-248.

DOI：10.3945/jn.110.127266

Precooked, instant (dry) infant cereals in the US are fortified with electrolytic iron, a source of low reactivity and suspected low bioavailability. Iron from ferrous fumarate is presumed to be more available. In this study, we compared a dry infant rice cereal (Cereal L) fortified with electrolytic iron (54.5 mg iron/100 g cereal) to a similar cereal (Cereal M) fortified with ferrous fumarate (52.2 mg Fe/100 g) for efficacy in maintaining iron status and preventing iron deficiency (ID) in breast-fed infants. Ascorbic acid was included in both cereals. In this prospective, randomized double-blind trial, exclusively breast-fed fed infants were enrolled at 1 mo and iron status was determined periodically. At 4 mo, 3 infants had ID anemia and were excluded. Ninety-five infants were randomized at 4 mo, and 69 (36 Cereal L, 33 Cereal M) completed the intervention at 9 mo. From 4 to 9 mo, they consumed daily one of the study cereals. With each cereal, 2 infants had mild ID, a prevalence of 4.2%, but no infant developed ID anemia. There were no differences in iron status between study groups. Iron intake from the study cereals was (mean +/- SD) 1.21 +/- 0.31 mg.kg(-1).d(-1) from Cereal L and 1.07 +/- 0.40 mg.kg(-1)-d(-1) from Cereal M. Eleven infants had low birth iron endowment (plasma ferritin < 55 mu g/L at 2 mo) and 54% of these infants had ID with or without anemia by 4 mo. We conclude that electrolytic iron and ferrous fumarate were equally efficacious as fortificants of this infant cereal. J. Nutr. 141: 243-248, 2011.

• 出版日期2011-2