title: Relationship between blood donors' iron status and their age, body mass index and donation frequency.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Regular blood donation may decrease body iron storage and lead to anemia. The aim here was to evaluate the iron status of Iranian male blood donors and the impact of age, body mass index (BMI) and donation frequency over one year, on iron status indices.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional, descriptive and analytical study at Tehran Blood Transfusion Center, Tehran, Iran.
  
  
  METHODS
  Between July and September 2011, 117 male blood donors were selected and divided into four groups according to their frequency of blood donation. Thirty male non-donors were also recruited as controls after adjusting for age, weight, height, smoking habits and monthly income. Iron status indices and some criteria such as general health and dietary measurements were determined among all subjects.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The values of the iron-related parameters were significantly lower among donors than among non-donors. Only total iron binding capacity (TIBC) was found to be significantly higher among different donor groups than in the controls. A significant positive correlation was observed between age and serum ferritin (SF) only among the donors who had donated once within the preceding year. The iron status indices did not show any significant relationship with BMI among donors or non-donors.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A donation frequency of more than twice a year had a significant influence on iron-related parameters. Therefore, without annual measurement of these parameters, further phlebotomies may lead to iron deficiency and donor rejection in the future.
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition and Biochemistry, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Ali Malekshahi
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Moghadam
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Mahboobeh Mehrabani
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Natanzi
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition and Biochemistry, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Mahmoud
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Djalali
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition and Biochemistry, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, School of Public Health, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Ahmad
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Saedisomeolia
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition and Biochemistry, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Mohammad Hassan
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Javanbakht
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition and Biochemistry, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Ali Akbar
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Saboor-Yaraghi
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition and Biochemistry, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Mahnaz
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zareei
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D018798:Anemia, Iron-Deficiency / Q000097:blood / Q000209:etiology; D001782:Blood Donors / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015992:Body Mass Index; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D002149:Energy Intake; D006801:Humans; D007492:Iran; D007501:Iron / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015596:Nutrition Assessment; D012016:Reference Values; D012907:Smoking / Q000097:blood; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D007501:Iron