Daily iron supplementation significantly improves maximal and submaximal exercise performance in WRA , providing a rationale to prevent and treat iron deficiency in this group .
Animal and human observational studies suggest that iron deficiency impairs physical exercise performance , but findings from r and omized trials on the effects of iron are equivocal .
Iron deficiency and anemia are especially common in women of reproductive age ( WRA ) .
Clear evidence of benefit from iron supplementation would inform clinical and public health guidelines .
Therefore , we performed a systematic review and meta- analysis to determine the effect of iron supplementation compared with control on exercise performance in WRA .
Hepcidin is the major predictor of erythrocyte iron incorporation in anemic African children
Iron supplementation strategies in the developing world remain controversial because of fears of exacerbating prevalent infectious diseases . Underst and ing the conditions in which iron will be absorbed and incorporated into erythrocytes is therefore important . We studied Gambian children with either postmalarial or nonmalarial anemia , who were given oral iron supplements daily for 30 days . Supplements administered on days 1 and 15 contained the stable iron isotopes 57Fe and 58Fe , respectively , and erythrocyte incorporation was measured in blood sample s drawn 14 days later . We investigated how the iron-regulatory hormone hepcidin and other inflammatory/iron-related indices , all measured on the day of isotope administration , correlated with erythrocyte iron incorporation . In univariate analyses , hepcidin , ferritin , C-reactive protein , and soluble transferrin receptor ( sTfR ) strongly predicted incorporation of 57Fe given on day 1 , while hepcidin , ferritin , and sTfR/log ferritin correlated with 58Fe incorporation . In a final multivariate model , the most consistent predictor of erythrocyte isotope incorporation was hepcidin . We conclude that under conditions of competing signals ( anemia , iron deficiency , and infection ) , hepcidin powerfully controls use of dietary iron . We suggest that low-cost point-of-care hepcidin assays would aid iron supplementation programs in the developing world
Daily iron supplementation significantly improves maximal and submaximal exercise performance in WRA , providing a rationale to prevent and treat iron deficiency in this group .
Animal and human observational studies suggest that iron deficiency impairs physical exercise performance , but findings from r and omized trials on the effects of iron are equivocal .
Iron deficiency and anemia are especially common in women of reproductive age ( WRA ) .
Clear evidence of benefit from iron supplementation would inform clinical and public health guidelines .
Therefore , we performed a systematic review and meta- analysis to determine the effect of iron supplementation compared with control on exercise performance in WRA .