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If there are any general principles that may be inferred for health planners wishing to conduct iron interventions in malaria-endemic areas, they are the following: 1) beware populations with potentially compromised immunity (especially to malaria), for example, HIV carriers, primigravidae and young infants; 2) beware high dose supplementation; 3) beware supplementation during the peak malaria transmission season; 4) beware known AS and SS genotypes; 4) beware interpreting low population ... Iron deficiency is associated with reversible abnormalities of immune function, but it is difficult to demonstrate the severity and relevance of these in observational studies. Iron treatment has been associated with acute exacerbations of infection, in particular, malaria. Iron and the immune system. Ward RJ(1), Crichton RR, Taylor DL, Della Corte L, Srai SK, Dexter DT. Author information: (1)Biologie du Comportement, Universite Catholique de Louvain, 1348, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium. roberta.ward@uclouvain.be In vitro studies of iron deficiency and functional immunity. Two component systems of active immunity—humoral and cell-mediated immunity—have been studied extensively, mainly in vitro, in relation to iron deficiency in both humans and animals. Iron is a mineral that plays an important role in immune function. A diet containing too little iron can contribute to anemia and weaken the immune system (1, 2, 3, 4). That's why it's important to optimize your intake of iron-rich foods, such as meat, poultry, fish, shellfish, legumes, nuts, seeds, cruciferous vegetables and dried fruit. In addition, lymphocytes play an important role in adaptive immunity. Thirdly, a variety of effector molecules, e.g. toll-like receptors, NF-κB, hypoxia factor-1, haem oxygenase, will orchestrate the inflammatory response by mobilising a variety of cytokines, neurotrophic factors, chemokines, and reactive oxygen and nitrogen species. Iron and immunity are closely linked: firstly by the fact that many of the genes/proteins involved in iron homoeostasis play a vital role in controlling iron fluxes such that bacteria are prevented from utilising iron for growth; secondly, cells of the innate immune system, monocytes, macrophages, microglia and lymphocytes, are able to combat bacterial insults by carefully controlling their iron fluxes, which are mediated by hepcidin and ferroportin. To summarize in vitro evidence, iron deficiency depresses certain aspects of cell-mediated immunity, including lymphocyte, neutrophil and macrophage function; humoral immunity is unaffected and the significance of hypoferremia (as opposed to normal transferrin saturation) on growth of microorganisms is uncertain. Little evidence exists for systematic major humoral deficiencies in iron-deficient humans, and although specific defects in cell-mediated immunity have been well described and reviewed, even in latent iron deficiency, note that such minor functional changes cannot be compared with the devastating effects of the well-defined immunodeficiency syndromes (Dhur et al. 1989, Farthing 1989, Hershko 1993, Oppenheimer and Hendrickse 1983, Scrimshaw and San Giovanni 1997). Combining iron-rich foods with a source of vitamin C can help boost your absorption even further. That said, it's important to remember that overly high blood iron levels can be harmful and may actually suppress the immune system (5, 6, 7) Therefore, it's best to use iron supplements only if you have an iron deficiency, or on the advice of a doctor. Query: how does iron boost immunity


assistant: Firstly by the fact that many of the genes/proteins involved in iron homoeostasis play a vital role in controlling iron fluxes such that bacteria are prevented from utilising iron for growth; secondly, cells of the innate immune system, monocytes, macrophages, microglia and lymphocytes, are able to combat bacterial insults by carefully controlling their iron fluxes, which are mediated by hepcidin and ferroportin.