The impact of large amount whole cow's milk intake on iron status in early childhood

Byun, Sung Yoon; Park, Mi Ran; Jeon, In Sang

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+/-1.7 g/dL and 30.8+/-4.5% 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.