Abstract

To increase both iron and enhancers for iron absorption through diets should be a basic strategy to sufficiently provide increased iron for pregnancy. Previous studies reported that iron intakes of Korean pregnant women were short and their iron status deteriorated as pregnancy progressed. However, there is little data about the bioavailability of dietary iron during pregnancy. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine the changes of dietary iron intakes, its bioa-vailability and iron status during pregnancy longitudinally in Korean women. A total of 151 pregnant women in their first trimester of pregnancy voluntarily participated. Among them, 72 women finished the research protocol during the second trimester and 55 did it during the third trimester. Dietary intakes of total iron, both non-heme and heme iron, as well as enhancers, both MPF (meat, poulty, and fish) and vitamin C, increased significantly as pregnancy progressed. As the results, bioavailability of dietary iron and iron absorbed increased significantly as pregnancy progressed. However, the amount of iron absorbed at each trimester did not meet considerably the iron needed during pregnancy. All five indices examined in the study, Hb level, Hct, serum concentrations of ferritin and sTfR (soluble transferrin receptor), and sTfR:ferritin ratio, showed that iron status of the subjects deteriorated as pregnancy progressed. The rate of anemia of the subjects increased as pregnancy progressed although more than 80% of the subjects took iron supplements after the 20th week of pregnancy. These results imply that it is needed to provide more iron especially, heme iron and dietary enhancers to prevent the deterioration of iron status during pregnancy. Future research on bioavaila-blility of supplemental iron should be performed to determine the iron balance precisely.

• Keywords: iron intake; bioavailability; iron status; pregnancy