Abstract
This paper has studied the nutritional iron status of adults in the city of Taegu. The subjects of the experiment were twenty six men and women living in the city of Taegu. The iron intake was 26.1mg for men and 17.1mg for women, which were respectively 217.5% and 95% of RDA. For men heme iron was 5% and nonheme iron, 95% for women heme iron was 5.8% and nonheme iron, 94.2%. The absorption rate of dietary iron was 6.2% for men and 9.1% for women. The hemoglobin was 14.5g/dl for men and 11.9g/dl for women, and the rate of developing anemia was 8.3% in men and 57.1% in women. The serum ferritin was 57.8ng/ml with men, which was found to be normal, and 14.7ng/ml with women, which showed that 57.1% of women were in the condition of iron depletion or iron deficiency anemia. The rate of developing anemia resulting from the deficiency of serum ferritin was as high as that from the deficiency of hemoglobin. The correlation between iron intake based on the dietary record, and energy intake, vegetable protein intake and dietary fiber intake was found to be positive. So was the correlation between the iron intake, and hemoglobin, serum ferritin and urinary iron excretion. There was also a positive correlation between hemoglobin, and hematocrit and serum ferritin. The correlation between fecal iron excretion and serum ferritin was positive. Fecal iron excretion and urinary iron excretion can be complemented by iron intake but the fact should be considered that 95% of iron intake is nonheme iron, which is difficult to absorb. Based on the above-mentioned things, serum ferritin and hemoglobin can be used as the standards of measuring anemia. As women in their child bearing years show the high rate of 57.1% of developing anemia, the more thorough nutritional education of iron is required.
