Circulating selenium and carboxymethyl-lysine, an advanced glycation endproduct, are independent predictors of anemia in older community-dwelling adults.

OBJECTIVE

To assess whether selenium and carboxymethyl-lysine (CML), two biomarkers of oxidative stress, are independent predictors of anemia in older community-dwelling adults.

METHODS

Plasma levels of selenium, CML, folate, vitamin B12, and testosterone and markers of iron status and inflammation were measured at baseline in 1036 adults at least 65 y old in the Invecchiare in Chianti Study, a population-based cohort study of aging in Tuscany, Italy, and examined in relation to prevalent anemia and incident anemia over 6 y of follow-up.

RESULTS

At enrollment, 11.6% of participants were anemic. Of 472 participants who were non-anemic at enrollment, 72 (15.3%) developed anemia within 6 y of follow-up. At enrollment, plasma CML in the highest quartile (>425 ng/mL) and plasma selenium in the lowest quartile (<66.6 μg/L) predicted incident anemia (hazard ratio 1.67, 95% confidence interval 1.07-2.59, P = 0.02; hazard ratio 1.55, 95% confidence interval 1.01-2.38, P = 0.05, respectively) in a multivariate Cox proportional hazards model that adjusted for age, education, body mass index, cognition, inflammation, red blood cell distribution width, ferritin, vitamin B12, testosterone, and chronic diseases.

CONCLUSION

Elevated plasma CML and low plasma selenium are long-term independent predictors of anemia in older community-dwelling adults. These findings support the idea that oxidative stress contributes to the development of anemia.