title: Suboptimal iron status and associated dietary patterns and practices in premenopausal women living in Auckland, New Zealand.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate associations between dietary patterns and suboptimal iron status in premenopausal women living in Auckland, New Zealand.
  
  
  METHODS
  Premenopausal women (n = 375; 18-44 years) were included in this cross-sectional analysis. Suboptimal iron status was defined as serum ferritin <20 μg/L. Participants completed a 144-item iron food frequency questionnaire (FeFFQ) and a questionnaire on dietary practices to assess dietary intake over the past month. Factor analysis was used to determine dietary patterns from the FeFFQ. Logistic regression was used to determine associations between these dietary patterns and iron status.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Seven dietary patterns were identified: refined carbohydrate and fat; Asian; healthy snacks; meat and vegetable; high tea and coffee; bread and crackers; and milk and yoghurt. Logistic regression suggested that following a "meat and vegetable" dietary pattern reduced the risk of suboptimal iron status by 41 % (95 % CI: 18, 58 %; P = 0.002) and following a "milk and yoghurt" pattern increased the risk of suboptimal iron status by 50 % (95 % CI: 15, 96 %; P = 0.003).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These results suggest that dietary patterns characterized by either a low intake of meat and vegetables or a high intake of milk and yoghurt are associated with an increased risk of suboptimal iron status. Dietary pattern analysis is a novel and potentially powerful tool for investigating the relationship between diet and iron status.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Food Nutrition and Human Health (IFNHH), Massey University Albany, North Shore City, New Zealand. K.L.Beck@massey.ac.nz
authors.forename: Kathryn L
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Beck
authors.forename: Rozanne
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kruger
authors.forename: Cathryn A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Conlon
authors.forename: Anne-Louise M
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Heath
authors.forename: Christophe
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Matthys
authors.forename: Jane
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Coad
authors.forename: Welma
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Stonehouse
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000818:Animals; D000886:Anthropometry; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004032:Diet; D004034:Diet Surveys; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005260:Female; D005293:Ferritins / Q000097:blood; D006801:Humans; D019266:Iron, Dietary / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000097:blood*; D016015:Logistic Models; D008460:Meat; D008892:Milk; D009520:New Zealand; D009752:Nutritional Status; D017697:Premenopause; D012307:Risk Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014675:Vegetables; D015014:Yogurt; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D019266:Iron, Dietary; D005293:Ferritins