D. Gilgen et Cgn. Mascie-taylor, The effect of weekly iron supplementation on anaemia and on iron deficiency among female tea pluckers in Bangladesh, J HUM NU DI, 14(3), 2001, pp. 185-190
Aim To investigate the effect of weekly iron supplementation on anaemia and
iron deficiency among adult, female tea pluckers.
Method A randomized double-blind intervention trial was conducted in a tea
estate in Bangladesh where a total of 280 women received either weekly iron
supplementation (200 mg ferrous fumarate and 200 mg folic acid) for 24 wee
ks or a matching placebo. Capillary blood samples were drawn at baseline an
d post-trial to determine haemoglobin, haematocrit and ferritin concentrati
on. Mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration (MCHC) was calculated using
the haemoglobin and haematocrit values.
Results The mean haemoglobin concentration in the supplemented group increa
sed by 5.52 g L-1 over the study period, on average, while ferritin values
decreased by 0.33 mug L-1. The control group showed a decrease in both mean
haemoglobin (-0.24 g L-1) and ferritin (-5.32 mug L-1). Those individuals
in the supplemented group with the lowest pretrial haemoglobin and ferritin
values experienced the greatest improvements post-trial, whereas nonanaemi
c individuals showed a decrease in both haemoglobin and ferritin concentrat
ions. A total of 62.2% of women in the supplemented group reported feeling
better and more energetic compared to 51.1% in the placebo group; 14.4% of
the supplemented group and 22.7% of the control group complained about side
-effects.
Conclusion Weekly iron supplementation was logistically simpler and cheaper
than daily supplementation but would have to be continued on a longer term
basis in order to combat both anaemia and iron deficiency.