ABSTRACT
Iron deficiency in infancy has been recognized as a public health issue for the past seven decades. Iron deficiency in infancy reflects the balance between iron endowment at birth, dietary intake, and iron requirements for growth and replacement of losses. Low birth weight infants are born with low iron stores and rapidly expand their vascular volume through growth. Many factors in the diet of infants, children, and adults influence the absorption of dietary iron. Iron deficiency exists with or without anemia, with the latter reflecting the mild end of the spectrum. In population groups where the prevalence of iron deficiency is low, most individuals will not manifest anemia. Iron deficiency has been associated with poor growth, an increase in certain infectious diseases, and reduced physical and intellectual performance. The inability to relate iron deficiency to physical performance in childhood may also reflect the lack of precise methods for study of work performance in children.
