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Query: UMLS:C0240066 (iron deficiency)
 7,156 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

There is a dramatic increase in total blood volume during healthy pregnancy. The disproportionate expansion in plasma volume (50%) and red cell mass (18-25% depending on iron status) results in a decrease in haemoglobin concentration maximal at 32 weeks gestation. This should not fall below 11 g/dl at any time during pregnancy. Deficiency of essential haematinics arising from increased requirements and inadequate intake may have far reaching effects on mother, fetus and neonate which bear no relationship to the impaired oxygen carrying capacity of the reduced cell mass. Pathological anaemia of pregnancy is due to over 90% of cases to iron deficiency associated with depleted stores and deficient intake. The single largest demand for iron arises from the increased red cell mass under the influence of erythropoietin. Tissue enzyme malfunction occurs even in the very first stages of iron deficiency before significant anaemia develops. Increased blood loss at delivery and preterm birth are observed associated complications. Off-spring of iron deficient mothers have decreased iron stores and may develop anaemia in the first year of life. Studies have shown behavioural abnormalities in children with iron deficiency and poor performance in the Bayley Mental Developmental Index. The poor performance in mental and motor development can be improved to the level of iron-sufficient infants by treatment with ferrous sulphate. Folate deficiency often accompanies iron deficiency as they are both associated with a poor diet. The haematological effects of folate deficiency are usually masked by iron deficiency.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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PMID:Erythropoiesis in pregnancy. 765 18

Iron deficiency affects over two billion people worldwide (Lotfi, M.; Venkatesh Mannar, M. G.; Merx, R. J.; Naber-van den Heuvel, P. Micronutrient Fortification of Foods: Current Practices, Research,and Opportunities; Micronutrient Initiative: Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, 1996). However, fortifying foods with highly bioavailable iron is technically challenging because of off-color and off-flavor development, catalytic degradation of vitamins, and oxidation of lipids. The role of highly bioavailable iron in the off-color development of foods and beverages is not well-understood. The goal of this research was to examine the interaction of iron with simple phenolics and polyphenols. Factors that may affect off-color development, such as pH, oxygen, temperature, and reducing and chelating agents, were evaluated as a model for food products. Our results demonstrated that the iron that reacts with the simple phenolic, catechol, to develop off-color must be in the oxidized state, and the iron is reduced in the presence of catechol. Because this is an oxidation/reduction reaction, the redox potential of all of the components is critical to the color development. Ferrous iron sources with low redox potentials and ferric iron sources with high redox potentials caused off-color development with catechol. Only polyphenols that contain ortho-hydroxyl groups cause off-color development with iron. All of the factors tested affect off-color development and redox potential of the system. Low pH, low oxygen, high temperature, and the presence of reducing and chelating agents inhibited off-color development. To confirm the model, foods that contained these polyphenols were evaluated for off-color development when iron was added. The foods tested reacted similarly to the models of polyphenols with iron. Off-color development was caused by oxidation-reduction interactions between ferric iron and polyphenols that contained ortho-dihydroxyl groups. Ferrous iron needed to be oxidized to participate in off-color development. In addition, methods identified in the models to prevent off-color development were effective in most of the food products examined. Using the ferrous form of iron and maintaining it in its reduced form by lowering pH, removing oxygen, and including reducing agents, it was possible to fortify foods with highly bioavailable iron.
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PMID:The role of iron and the factors affecting off-color development of polyphenols. 1267 Jan 75