Department of Dietetics, Institute of Human Nutrition Sciences, Warsaw University of Life Sciences (WULS-SGGW), 159C Nowoursynowska Street, 02-776 Warsaw, Poland.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 May 14;18(10):5252. doi: 10.3390/ijerph18105252.
Intake of sufficient amounts of iron by adolescents is a matter of great concern. Therefore, it is crucial to determine the factors that may influence iron intake in this specific population. The present study aimed to analyze the environmental determinants of the intake of heme and nonheme iron in a national homogenous sample of Polish adolescents. Adolescents (aged 15-20 years) were randomly chosen from all the regions of Poland by performing a sampling of secondary schools (random quota sampling). The total iron intake, as well as the intake of heme iron, nonheme iron, animal iron, plant iron, and iron from various food products, was assessed among 1385 female respondents and 1025 male respondents using the validated IRON Intake Calculation-Food Frequency Questionnaire (IRONIC-FFQ). The intake was compared between the subgroups stratified by meat intake in the region, gross domestic product (GDP) in the region, and size of the city (rural vs. urban environment). It was observed that meat intake in the region did not influence the intake of total iron, as well as the intake of heme iron, nonheme iron, animal iron, plant iron, and iron from various food products ( > 0.05). However, GDP and the size of the city were determined as the most influencing factors, as they were associated with iron intake in both female and male adolescents, with the most prominent differences between the subgroups found in the case of females. Female adolescents from high-GDP regions had significantly higher intake of heme iron ( = 0.0047) and animal iron ( = 0.0029), and lower intake of nonheme iron compared to those from low-GDP regions ( = 0.0342). The total iron intake was higher among female adolescents who were from medium cities than those from big cities ( = 0.0350), but significantly higher animal iron intake ( = 0.0404) and plant iron intake ( 0.0385) were observed among females from villages and small towns compared to females from other groups. Based on the results, it may be concluded that size of the city and the economic status of the region are the most important environmental determinants of iron intake in adolescents and, hence, they should be taken into account while developing educational programs, especially for the female adolescent population.
青少年摄入足够的铁是一个非常值得关注的问题。因此，确定可能影响这一特定人群铁摄入量的因素至关重要。本研究旨在分析波兰青少年这一同质国家样本中血红素和非血红素铁摄入的环境决定因素。通过对波兰所有地区的中学进行抽样（随机配额抽样），从所有地区随机选择 15-20 岁的青少年。在 1385 名女性受访者和 1025 名男性受访者中，使用经过验证的铁摄入量计算-食物频率问卷（IRONIC-FFQ）评估了总铁摄入量以及血红素铁、非血红素铁、动物铁、植物铁和各种食物中铁的摄入量。根据该地区肉类摄入量、国内生产总值（GDP）和城市规模（农村与城市环境）对亚组进行分层，比较了摄入量。结果表明，该地区肉类摄入量并不影响总铁以及血红素铁、非血红素铁、动物铁、植物铁和各种食物中铁的摄入量（>0.05）。然而，GDP 和城市规模被确定为最具影响力的因素，因为它们与男女青少年的铁摄入量有关，在女性中发现了最明显的亚组差异。高 GDP 地区的女性青少年血红素铁（=0.0047）和动物铁（=0.0029）摄入量显著较高，而非血红素铁摄入量较低，与低 GDP 地区相比（=0.0342）。来自中等城市的女性青少年总铁摄入量高于来自大城市的青少年（=0.0350），但来自村庄和小镇的女性青少年动物铁（=0.0404）和植物铁（=0.0385）摄入量显著较高与其他群体的女性。基于这些结果，可以得出结论，城市规模和地区经济状况是青少年铁摄入量的最重要环境决定因素，因此在制定教育计划时应考虑这些因素，特别是针对女性青少年群体。
