Thyroid Functions in Bamboo-Shoots Consuming Children of Tripura, North-east India

Abstract

PurposeInformation on thyroid functions in populations consuming potent antithyroidal bamboo-shoots (BS) was found scanty. Therefore, to assess thyroid function in BS consuming children was found relevant.MethodsThis cross-sectional study included 127 children from 3 villages. Thyroid volume (TV), free thyroxine (FT4), free triiodothyronine (FT3), thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), thyroglobulin antibody (Tg-Ab), thyroid peroxidase antibody (TPO-Ab), urinary iodine (UI), urinary thiocyanate (USCN), salt iodine (SI), water iodine (WI), and BS consumption pattern were assessed. ResultsVariable-wise overall mean±SDs/medians/interquartile ranges (IQR) were - age: 8.69±1.69/8.77/7.22-9.74 y, TVol: 0.82±0.27/0.82/0.67-0.96 ml, FT4: 19.5+5.6/20.1/16.9-22.0 pmol/L, FT3: 4.27+1.24/4.22/3.35-4.96 pmol/L, TSH: 2.44+1.39/2.33/1.60-3.15 mIU/L, Tg-Ab: 15.2+10.0/12.5/11.1-14.5 IU/ml, TPO-Ab: 5.58+12.25/3.89/2.90-5.11 IU/ml, UI: 117.4±58.5/108/73-160.5 µg/L, USCN: 0.99+0.67/0.8/0.5-1.2 mg/dl, WI: 4 .69±4.56/3.0/1.35–7µg/L, and BS consumption: 153.8±01.4/119/71.4–214.3 g/person/day respectively. Only 80.3% salt samples had ≥15 ppm iodine. Thyroid dysfunction prevalence was 6.3%. There were positive correlations between TV and FT4 (r=0.2466, p=0.005), UI and TSH (r=0.2633, p=0.003), TSH and FT4 (r=0.2135, p=0.016), TSH and FT3 (r=0.1898, p=0.033), USCN and FT4 (r=0.2477, p=0.005), Tg-Ab and TPO-Ab (r=0.3768, p=<0.001), and negative correlations between Tg-Ab and TSH (r=-0.2024, p=0.023), Tg-Ab and FT4 (r=-0.1869, p=0.035). In boys, USCN had a positive correlation with TPO-Ab (r=0.3069, p=0.018). The village having highest levels of BS consumption (p=0.037) and median UI showed higher TSH levels (p=0.037) and higher FT3 level (p=0.001) compared to the village of lowest BS consumption.ConclusionsThe BS consuming children appear at risk of developing hypothyroidism by Tg-Ab, which may partly be diminished by reducing BS consumption.