Whole blood and Plasma Vitamin C Concentrations of Elementary School Children in Chinju

Kim, Yoon Ok; Choi, Myoung Bum; Cho, Youn Kyeong; Sin, Sun Kyeong; Kim, Song Ja; Woo, Hyang Ok; Kim, Seoung Hwan; Youn, Hee Shang; Kim, Seon Ju; Maeng, Kook Young; Ko, Gyung Hyuck; Baik, Seung Chul; Lee, Woo Kon; Cho, Myung Je; Rhee, Kwang Ho

Abstract

PURPOSE
Recommended dietary allowance of vitamin C was determined on the basis of preventing the scurvy without considerations of the important function of the vitamin C as a first line antioxidant. So we measured the whole blood and plasma vitamin C concentrations of the contemporay healthy elementary school children in Chinju for the establishment of the optimal daily vitamin C requirment in the elementary school children.
METHODS
Whole blood and plasma vitamin C concentrations were measured by the 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine method in 338 children from the 1st to the 6th grade of one elementary school in Chinju.
RESULTS
Whole blood and plasma vitamin C concentrations were 1.36+/-0.34mg/dL and 1.07+/-0.33mg/dL respectively. There existed an close relationship between whole blood and plasma vitamin C concentrations (r=0.77, p=0.0001). Whole blood vitamin C concentration decreased as the age became older (r=-0.22 p=0.0001), but plasma vitamin C concentration did not change. There were no sex differences in the whole blood and plasma vitamin C concentrations except in the 3rd grade (p<0.05). Twenty-three of 338 elementary school children (6.8%) had the plasma vitamin C concentration less than 0.6mg/dL.
CONCLUSIONS
We produced the blood and plasma vitamin C concentrations of the contemporay elementary school children in Chinju. These values were not satisfactory in consideration of the importance of the childhood health.