Haematological studies on pre-menopausal Indian and Caucasian vegetarians compared with Caucasian omnivores

Abstract

Full blood counts, serum ferritin, vitamin B,, and folate, erythrocyte folate concentrations and nutrient intakes were estimated in twenty-three Indian vegetarian, twenty-two Caucasian omnivores and eighteen Caucasian vegetarian women aged 25-40 years. Energy and copper intakes were lower in the Indian women than in the Caucasians. Intakes of dietary fibre, vitamin C and folate were greater and the proportion of energy derived from fat was lower in the vegetarians than in the omnivores. Vitamin B,, and protein intakes were lower in both vegetarian groups than in the omnivores. Fe intake was similar in all the groups but haem Fe provided one-quarter of the Fe intake of the omnivores. Haemoglobin concentrations were generally inside the normal range in all groups, but were lower in the Indians as were mean corpuscular volume (MCV) and mean corpuscular haemoglobin (MCH). Higher MCV, M C H and lower erythrocyte (RBC) counts were observed in Caucasian vegetarians compared with the Caucasian omnivores. In both groups of vegetarians, concentrations of serum vitamin B,, and ferritin were markedly lower than in the omnivores. RBC folate concentrations were lower in the Indians than in either of the Caucasian groups when subjects taking supplements were excluded. It is concluded that vegetarians need to ensure they have adequate intakes of Fe and vitamin BIT Vegetarians: Vitamin BIZ: Folate : Haematology : Indian

Dietary Determinants of and Possible Solutions to Iron Deficiency for Young Women Living in Industrialized Countries: A Review

“…Most have found vegetarians to have lower serum ferritin concentrations than omnivores [57,68,69,70]. Premenopausal women in the United States who consumed red meat had higher serum ferritin and hemoglobin concentrations, and lower total iron binding capacity compared with lacto-ovo vegetarians, or those consuming fish or poultry as their main protein source [64].…”

Iron Status and Dietary Iron Intake of Vegetarian Children from Poland

“…It has been suggested that vegetarians could be at greater risk of ID [11], although some research results show that eliminating meat leads to higher intake of whole-grain and fortified cereals, legumes, nuts, seeds and dried fruit, and iron intake is often greater than in omnivores [12,13,14,15]. However, poorer iron status observed in the vegetarian diet may be due, at least partly, to lower iron bioavailability since non-haem iron (dairy products, eggs, all plant foods; absorbed 2-20%) is not absorbed as well as haem iron (meat, poultry, fish; absorbed 13-35%) [16].…”

Enhancing the nutritional value of meat

“…Serum ferritin, the body's iron store, is strongly correlated with haem iron (Reddy and Sanders, 1990). Bioavailability of iron plays an important role in determining iron status.…”