TY - JOUR
T1 - Women with low iron stores absorb iron from soybeans
AU - Murray-Kolb, Laura E.
AU - Welch, Ross
AU - Theil, Elizabeth C.
AU - Beard, John L.
PY - 2003/1/1
Y1 - 2003/1/1
N2 - Background: Worldwide, 30% of the population, a greater proportion of whom are women and children, is iron deficient. Soybeans are a major source of nonheme iron in many human diets, but information on iron bioavailability is still conflicting. Because much of soybean iron is in ferritin [distinct from the poorly bioavailable iron in cereals resulting from interactions between calcium, Fe(III), phytate, and proteins in the meal], soybeans provide a target for manipulating seed iron composition to achieve increased iron bioavailability. Objective: The aim was to reevaluate soybean iron bioavailability. Design: Eighteen women, most with marginal iron deficiency, consumed meals with intrinsically labeled (55Fe) soybeans (hydroponically grown and nonnodulating) as soup (n = 11) or muffins (n = 7) and a reference dose of 59Fe as ferrous sulfate in ascorbate solution. The radioactivity in red cells was measured 14 and 28 d later. Results: The mean 55Fe absorption from either soup or muffins was 27% and that from the reference dose was 61%. 55Fe was distributed approximately equally between protein (49.3 ± 3.0%) and phytate, a contrast with nodulating soybeans likely caused by a high phosphate content in the growth medium. There was an expected inverse correlation (r = -0.793, P < 0.001) between red cell radioactivity and serum ferritin concentration. Conclusions: These results show that soybeans appear to be a good source of nutritional iron in marginally iron-deficient individuals. More study is needed on the effect of plant nodulation on the form of soybean iron, aimed at enhancing bioavailability to combat iron deficiency in at-risk populations.
AB - Background: Worldwide, 30% of the population, a greater proportion of whom are women and children, is iron deficient. Soybeans are a major source of nonheme iron in many human diets, but information on iron bioavailability is still conflicting. Because much of soybean iron is in ferritin [distinct from the poorly bioavailable iron in cereals resulting from interactions between calcium, Fe(III), phytate, and proteins in the meal], soybeans provide a target for manipulating seed iron composition to achieve increased iron bioavailability. Objective: The aim was to reevaluate soybean iron bioavailability. Design: Eighteen women, most with marginal iron deficiency, consumed meals with intrinsically labeled (55Fe) soybeans (hydroponically grown and nonnodulating) as soup (n = 11) or muffins (n = 7) and a reference dose of 59Fe as ferrous sulfate in ascorbate solution. The radioactivity in red cells was measured 14 and 28 d later. Results: The mean 55Fe absorption from either soup or muffins was 27% and that from the reference dose was 61%. 55Fe was distributed approximately equally between protein (49.3 ± 3.0%) and phytate, a contrast with nodulating soybeans likely caused by a high phosphate content in the growth medium. There was an expected inverse correlation (r = -0.793, P < 0.001) between red cell radioactivity and serum ferritin concentration. Conclusions: These results show that soybeans appear to be a good source of nutritional iron in marginally iron-deficient individuals. More study is needed on the effect of plant nodulation on the form of soybean iron, aimed at enhancing bioavailability to combat iron deficiency in at-risk populations.
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U2 - 10.1093/ajcn/77.1.180
DO - 10.1093/ajcn/77.1.180
M3 - Article
C2 - 12499339
AN - SCOPUS:0037215274
SN - 0002-9165
VL - 77
SP - 180
EP - 184
JO - American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
JF - American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
IS - 1
ER -