All issues > Volume 36(7); 1993

Original Article

J Korean Pediatr Soc. 1993;36(7):968-974. Published online July 15, 1993.

The Impact of Large Amount Whole Cow's Milk Intake on Iron Status in Early Childhood

Sung Yoon SY Byun¹, Mi Ran MR Park¹, In Sang IS Jeon¹

¹Department of Pediatrics, Chung Goo Sung Sim Hospital, Seoul, Korea

Abstract

To determine the impact of intake large amount whole cow's milk (WCM) on iron status during early childhood(18~36 months), selected indices of complete blood count (CBC) and iron status were compared between the WCM large amount intake group (n=20) and small amount intake group (n=20). WCM large amount intake children's mean hemoglobin and mean hematocrit were 9.6¡¾1.7g/dl and 30.8¡¾4.5% respectively. These range of peripheral blood with other indices of CBC disclosed the hypochromic microcytic anemia. WCM large amount intake children's some indices of CBC hemoglobin, hematocrit, MCV, MCH-were significantly lower than those of small amount intake children(p<0.01). WCM large amount intake children had significantly lower mean iron, transferrin saturation and ferritin(p<0.01) and greater mean total iron binding capacity (p<0.05) than did small amount intake children. It is concluded that intake large amount of WCM for long duration impacts on the iron status of 18~36 months old children disadvantageously. It should be avoided for the protection of irreversible recognitive impairment and behavioral change.

Keywords :Iron status, Iron deficiency anemia, Whole cow's milk