American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol 1, 275-286, Copyright © 1953 by The American Society for Clinical Nutrition, Inc.

IRON DEFICIENCY in INFANCY and CHILDHOOD

¹ From the St. Christopher's Hospital for Children, Philadelphia

The clinical aspects of iron-deficiency anemia in infants and children have been discussed. One hundred and sixty-two cases of iron-deficiency anemia have been used to illustrate certain features of the disease.

Children are prone to develop iron deficiency because of (a) their rapid growth and consequent great demand for iron, (b) the low iron content of normal diets in early life, and (c) the common occurrence of "feeding problems" in late infancy and early childhood.

The laboratory findings in iron-deficiency anemia are presented and treatment is discussed.

The present knowledge of iron metabolism is reviewed and a brief discussion of the changes in iron absorption and utilization in iron-deficient children is presented.

That there are abnormalities in iron-deficiency states other than those which can be attributed to the anemia per se is suggested by clinical observations of the effect of large doses of parenterally administered iron to children with severe deficiency of iron.