[Iron deficiency in infants. Study of risk factors].

A study of iron deficiency was carried out in two districts in Paris among 207 children aged 10 months recruited from two well-baby out-patient clinics. The main results are as follows: 12% of children were anemic, ferritin was low in 21% and 40% had a borderline deficiency, as shown by a decrease in siderophilin saturation. The average daily milk intake was greater among the immigrants, but this group, being mainly fed whole cow milk with no iron supplementation, had a lower iron intake overall. A positive correlation was found between the percentage of ingested iron-supplemented formulas and the mean corpuscular volume or serum iron levels. Iron deficiency was more frequent in children born to multiparous mothers and in the absence of any iron supplement during pregnancy. Weight gain was inversely correlated to ferritin levels, suggesting a major role of fast growth on iron metabolism.