Iodine deficiency in pregnant women in eastern Turkey (Malatya Province): 7 years after the introduction of mandatory table salt iodization

Abstract

ObjectiveThe aim of the present study was to evaluate the urinary I excretion of pregnant women in Malatya Province, eastern Turkey.Design and settingA cross-sectional study was performed on pregnant women in urban and rural settlements of Malatya Province.SubjectsUrinary I excretion was measured for 824 pregnant women who were randomly selected using a probability-proportional-to-size sampling methodology.ResultsMedian urinary I concentration (UIC) of pregnant women was 77·4 μg/l. The percentage of pregnant women with UIC below 100 μg/l was 83·3.ConclusionThese results indicate that I deficiency disorders (IDD) is still a problem in Malatya Province and most certainly in other parts of the country. Proper monitoring of I content of the salt sold or used in the area, in order to strengthen the IDD intervention programme, is suggested.

Iodine deficiency in pregnant women in the apparently iodine‐sufficient capital city of Turkey

“…More importantly, 72·8% of these pregnant women were iodine deficient and 15·4% had goitre. Therefore, our results demonstrate that iodine deficiency remains a serious problem for pregnant women living in Ankara, an area that appeared to be iodine sufficient in previous studies, and are in agreement with similar reports of low iodine status in pregnant women from other regions of Turkey . Our results also indicate that iodine nutritional status among SAC does not reflect the iodine supply of pregnant women and their offspring in the same region.…”

“…Even though the large data set of national CH screening in Turkey has not yet been published, the current regional data showing a high prevalence of neonates with elevated TSH levels implies the presence of inadequate iodine nutrition of pregnant women . The present and other studies, therefore, provide direct evidence for the problem of iodine deficiency among pregnant women in Turkey.…”

“…These data also confirm that iodine nutritional status among SAC does not reflect the iodine supply of pregnant women in the same region. Based on the data of the present and other studies from Turkey, we propose that nationwide surveillance studies should urgently be performed for direct assessment and monitoring of iodine status in pregnant women. We also consider that pregnant women in Turkey should be supplemented by iodine‐containing preparations in addition to iodized salt.…”

“…Because an elevated TSH level in newborns is suggested as a sensitive indicator of iodine nutrition during pregnancy, previous studies on neonatal TSH and CH generally imply that pregnant women in Turkey have inadequate iodine nutrition . However, only a few studies directly examined iodine status in Turkish pregnant women . Therefore, we aimed to assess the iodine nutritional status of pregnant women living in Ankara, an area appears to be iodine sufficient from earlier studies.…”

Maternal and Neonatal Urinary Iodine Status and its Effect on Neonatal TSH Levels in a Mildly Iodine-Deficient Area

“…Iodine deficiency in the mothers, despite the fact that almost all of them had used iodized salt during pregnancy, showed that the use of iodized salt during pregnancy and nursing periods did not meet their iodine requirements. Even though the use of iodized salt has become mandatory in Turkey since the initiation of the national program in 1998, studies have shown that the rate of iodine deficiency continued to be significantly high in sensitive populations, such as pregnant and nursing mothers (11,12,13,14). The iodine requirement increases in pregnant and nursing mothers and cannot be satisfied by using standard iodized salts.…”