Does obesity increase risk for iron deficiency? A review of the literature and the potential mechanisms

Ana C. Cepeda-Lopez, Isabelle Aeberli, Michael B. Zimmermann

    Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

    135 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    Increasing obesity is a major global health concern while at the same time iron-deficiency anemia remains common worldwide. Although these two conditions represent opposite ends of the spectrum of over- and under-nutrition, they appear to be linked: overweight individuals are at higher risk of iron deficiency than normal-weight individuals. Potential explanations for this association include dilutional hypoferremia, poor dietary iron intake, increased iron requirements, and/or impaired iron absorption in obese individuals. Recent evidence suggests obesity-related inflammation may play a central role through its regulation of hepcidin. Hepcidin levels are higher in obese individuals and are linked to subclinical inflammation; this may reduce iron absorption and blunt the effects of iron forti-fication. Thus, low iron status in overweight individuals may result from a combination of nutritional (reduced absorption) and functional (increased sequestration) iron deficiency. In this review, we focus on subclinical inflammation in obesity, and its effect on hepcidin levels, as the most plausible explanation for the link between iron deficiency and obesity.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)263-270
    Number of pages8
    JournalInternational Journal for Vitamin and Nutrition Research
    Volume80
    Issue number4-5
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 1 Dec 2010

    All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

    • Medicine (miscellaneous)
    • Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism
    • Nutrition and Dietetics

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