Governance
Inescapable
risks of mandatory iron fortification – Fortification will increase serum
ferritin without changing haemoglobin level
·
Iron isnt safe in
excess; its an oxidizing agent with a variety of ill-effects.
·
Iron will increase the
risk for several non-communicable diseases like diabetes, high blood pressure
and even high blood cholesterol.
·
The iron body stores is
measured by blood serum ferritin concentration. Fortification of anyone staple
(rice, wheat, or salt) can increase serum ferritin, while not necessarily
changing the haemoglobin level.
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No less than fifty per
cent of Indian youngsters, aged 5-19 years, already had a biomarker of either
high blood glucose or high blood lipids, even once thin or stunted.
·
The World Health
Organization is having a consultation this year to judge if haemoglobin
diagnostic cut-offs for anaemia should be down in different geographies, one
among that is india.
·
This is partially based
on a recent paper within the Lancet by us, that showed that the cut-offs were
likely less than the World Health Organization cut-off in Indian youngsters.
·
This lowering has been
also confirmed during a study of no less than thirty two countries worldwide,
also as another in pregnant ladies.
·
A lower cut-off can
mean lower (halved) anaemia prevalence.
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