title: Oral zinc supplementation decreases the serum iron concentration in healthy schoolchildren: a pilot study.
abstract: The recognized antagonistic actions between zinc and iron prompted us to study this subject in children. A convenience sample was used. Thirty healthy children between 8 and 9 years of age were studied with the aim of establishing the effect of a 3-mo oral zinc supplementation on iron status. Fifteen individuals were given a placebo (control group), and 15 were given 10 mg Zn/day (experimental group). Blood samples were collected at 0, 60, 120, 180 and 210 min after a 12-h overnight fast, before and after placebo or zinc supplementation. This supplementation was associated with significant improvements in energy, protein, fat, carbohydrate, fiber, calcium, iron, and zinc intake in accordance with the recommendations for age and sex. The basal serum zinc concentration significantly increased after oral zinc supplementation (p < 0.001). However, basal serum iron concentrations and area under the iron curves significantly decreased in the experimental group (p < 0.0001) and remained at the same level throughout the 210-min study. The values obtained for hemoglobin, mean corpuscular volume, ferritin, transferrin, transferrin saturation, ceruloplasmin and total protein were within normal reference ranges. In conclusion, the decrease in serum iron was likely due to the effects of chronic zinc administration, and the decrease in serum iron was not sufficient to cause anemia.
authors.affiliation: Center for Health Sciences, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN), Av. Gal. Gustavo Cordeiro de Farias, s/n, CEP 59012-570, Natal, RN, Brazil. nairanbrito@yahoo.com.br.
authors.forename: Naira Josele Neves
authors.initials: NJ
authors.lastname: de Brito
authors.affiliation: Center for Health Sciences, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN), Av. Gal. Gustavo Cordeiro de Farias, s/n, CEP 59012-570, Natal, RN, Brazil. eg76@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Érika Dantas
authors.initials: ÉD
authors.lastname: Rocha
authors.affiliation: Center for Health Sciences, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN), Av. Gal. Gustavo Cordeiro de Farias, s/n, CEP 59012-570, Natal, RN, Brazil. alfredoas100@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Alfredo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: de Araújo Silva
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Center for Industrial Technology, UFRN, Av. Senador Salgado Filho, 3000, BR 101 km 92, Campus Universitário, CEP 59072-970, Natal, RN, Brazil. jbsc01@yahoo.com.br.
authors.forename: João Batista Sousa
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Costa
authors.affiliation: Department of Statistics, UFRN, Av. Senador Salgado Filho, 3000, BR 101 km 92, Campus Universitário, CEP 59072-970, Natal, RN, Brazil. mardonefranca@globo.com.
authors.forename: Mardone Cavalcante
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: França
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical and Toxicological Analyses, UFRN, Av. Gal. Gustavo Cordeiro de Farias, s/n, CEP 59012-570, Natal, RN, Brazil. mgalmeida84@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: das Graças Almeida
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, UFRN, Av. Gal. Gustavo Cordeiro de Farias, s/n, CEP 59012-570, Natal, RN, Brazil. jbn@pq.cnpq.br.
authors.forename: José
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Brandão-Neto
mesh_terms: D018798:Anemia, Iron-Deficiency / Q000097:blood / Q000209:etiology; D019540:Area Under Curve; D001798:Blood Proteins / Q000378:metabolism; D002570:Ceruloplasmin / Q000378:metabolism; D002648:Child; D019587:Dietary Supplements / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005260:Female; D005293:Ferritins / Q000097:blood; D006454:Hemoglobins / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007501:Iron / Q000097:blood; D000090463:Iron Deficiencies; D008297:Male; D009752:Nutritional Status / Q000187:drug effects*; D010865:Pilot Projects; D014168:Transferrin / Q000378:metabolism; D015032:Zinc / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: D001798:Blood Proteins; D006454:Hemoglobins; D014168:Transferrin; D005293:Ferritins; D007501:Iron; D002570:Ceruloplasmin; D015032:Zinc