Department of Water Resources Engineering, Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), Stockholm, Sweden.
Ambio. 2009 Sep;38(6):334-8. doi: 10.1579/08-r-485.1.
Zinc deficiency is a problem in developing countries and not least so in Africa. This concerns both agriculture and human food provision. Zinc deficiency in soils may severely decrease yields, whereas insufficient zinc in food intake primarily affects the immune defense, notably in children. The present investigation concerned zinc availability in soils, crops, and food in the Niger inland delta in Mali. Agricultural soils are largely deficient in plant-available zinc, however, soils in close vicinity to habitation show elevated zinc concentrations. The zinc concentrations in crops are low; in rice, they are about half of reference ranges. Zinc intake assessed from a number of sampled meals was about half the recommended requirement. When zinc concentration is higher phytate was also high, which made the zinc less available. In spite of a recorded sufficient intake of iron, anemia is common and is most likely because of the high phytate concentration in the cereal-dominated diet. Increasing zinc and iron availability would be possible through the use of malting, fermentation, and soaking in food preparation. Finally, in the long run, any trace element deficiency, especially that of zinc in agricultural soils needs to be amended by addition of appropriate amounts in commercial fertilizers.
锌缺乏是发展中国家，尤其是非洲国家面临的一个问题。这不仅涉及农业，也关系到人类的食物供应。土壤中缺锌可能严重降低产量，而食物中锌摄入不足则主要影响免疫防御，尤其是儿童。本研究调查了马里尼日尔内陆三角洲地区土壤、作物和食物中的锌的可利用性。农业土壤中植物可利用的锌大量缺乏，但靠近居住地的土壤锌浓度较高。作物中的锌浓度较低，在水稻中约为参考范围的一半。从一些抽样餐中评估的锌摄入量约为推荐量的一半。当锌浓度较高时，植酸盐的浓度也较高，这使得锌的生物利用度降低。尽管记录的铁摄入量充足，但贫血很常见，这很可能是由于以谷物为主的饮食中植酸盐浓度较高。通过在食物制备中使用发芽、发酵和浸泡，可以提高锌和铁的生物利用度。最后，从长远来看，需要通过在商业肥料中添加适量的微量元素来纠正农业土壤中特别是锌的缺乏。
