New Zealand Defence Force, Defence House, Wellington 6011, New Zealand.
School of Sport, Exercise and Nutrition, College of Health, Massey University, Sir Neil Waters Lecture Theatres, Auckland 0632, New Zealand.
Mil Med. 2023 Jul 22;188(7-8):e2550-e2556. doi: 10.1093/milmed/usad023.
Suboptimal iron status is an issue for women joining the military because of its association with impaired aerobic performance, yet no studies have investigated dietary and non-dietary determinants of iron status simultaneously in this population. The purpose of this study was to explore associations between iron stores, dietary patterns (DPs), and potential non-dietary determinants of iron status in premenopausal women at the commencement of basic military training (BMT) in the New Zealand Army.
During week 1 of BMT, demographic, body composition, lifestyle, medical history, and dietary data were measured as potential determinants of serum ferritin (SF) in 101 participants. Following univariate analysis, age, body fat percentage, previous blood donation, at least 6 h of exercise per week that raised the heart rate, and a vegetarian DP were analyzed using a multiple linear regression model.
An increase in body fat percentage was associated with increased SF (P < .009), although blood donation in the past year decreased SF (P < .011) compared to those participants who did not donate blood. There was no association between SF and a vegetarian DP or hours of exercise per week. The model explained 17.5% of the variance in SF at the commencement of BMT.
Body fat percentage and blood donation in the past year were the strongest determinants of iron stores in healthy premenopausal women commencing BMT. It is recommended that women joining the New Zealand Army are provided information to maintain or improve their iron status based on these findings. This includes clinical screening of iron status, advice for women considering blood donation, and dietary advice regarding total energy requirements and iron bioavailability.
由于铁状态不佳与有氧运动表现受损有关，因此加入军队的女性存在铁状态不佳的问题，然而，目前还没有研究同时调查该人群中铁状态的饮食和非饮食决定因素。本研究的目的是探索在新西兰陆军基本军事训练（BMT）开始时，铁储备、饮食模式（DPs）和铁状态的潜在非饮食决定因素之间的关联。
在 BMT 的第 1 周，对 101 名参与者的人口统计学、身体成分、生活方式、病史和饮食数据进行了测量，作为血清铁蛋白（SF）的潜在决定因素。在进行单变量分析后，使用多元线性回归模型分析年龄、体脂百分比、以前的献血、每周至少 6 小时的能提高心率的运动以及素食 DP。
与未献血的参与者相比，体脂百分比的增加与 SF 的增加呈正相关（P<.009），但过去一年的献血会降低 SF（P<.011）。SF 与素食 DP 或每周运动时间没有关联。该模型解释了 BMT 开始时 SF 变异的 17.5%。
在开始 BMT 时，体脂百分比和过去一年的献血是健康绝经前妇女铁储备的最强决定因素。建议向加入新西兰军队的女性提供基于这些发现来维持或改善其铁状态的信息。这包括对铁状态进行临床筛查、对考虑献血的女性提供建议以及关于总能量需求和铁生物利用度的饮食建议。
