Iron retention in iron-fortified rice and use of iron-fortified rice to treat women with iron deficiency: A pilot study.

OBJECTIVES: 1. Evaluate the effect of washing and cooking iron-fortified rice on iron retention and bioavailability. 2. Evaluate the effect of iron-fortified rice on women with iron deficiency anemia. METHODS: 1. Iron-fortified rice (18 mg/100 g as FeSO4) was cooked in Baton Rouge, Louisiana (C), rinsed and cooked (RC), fried and cooked (FC), cooked with extra water (CW), or soaked and cooked with extra water (SCW), and iron retention was determined. 2. Rice samples were cooked in Kampala, Uganda in a lab (C-Uganda) and households using traditional cooking method (TC-Uganda) and iron retention were determined. 3. Seventeen women with iron deficiency (low iron and/or low ferritin) anemia were randomized to 100 g/d of rice (two cooked 0.75 cup servings) for two weeks containing 18 mg/d iron (supplemented) or 0.5 mg/d iron (un-supplemented). Hemoglobin and hematocrit were evaluated at baseline and 2 weeks with other measures of iron metabolism. RESULTS: 1. Iron retention, from highest to lowest, was (C), (RC), (FC), (C-Uganda), (CW), (SCW) and (TC-Uganda). 2. Seventeen women were randomized and 15 completed the study (hemoglobin 10.6 ± 1.6 g, hematocrit 33.7 ± 4.1%), 9 in the iron-fortified rice group and 6 in the un-fortified rice group. The iron-fortified group had a greater increase in hemoglobin (0.82 g, p = 0.0035) and Hematocrit (1.83%, p = 0.0248) with directional differences in other measures of iron metabolism favoring the iron-fortified group. CONCLUSIONS: Iron-fortified rice increased hemoglobin and hematocrit in women with iron-deficient anemia. Iron deficiency and anemia are widespread in Southeast Asia and Africa and undermine development in these regions.

Pesticide residues and heavy metals in Lake Victoria Nile perch, Lates niloticus, belly flap oil.

Oil was extracted from the belly flaps of varied sizes of Nile perch caught from Lake Victoria (Uganda). The oil was analyzed for pesticide residues and heavy metals. Total residual concentration of dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, endosulfan, hexachlorocyclohexane, hexachlorobenzene, heptachlor, chlordane, endrin, aldrin and chlorofenvinphos increased significantly (p < 0.05) with fish size. Mercury and lead were detected in most samples while arsenic and cadmium were below detection limits. Nile perch may, therefore, accumulate significant amount of chemical contaminants. Levels of contaminants in Nile perch oil were, in general, within limits considered acceptable by the stringent German Food Law for human consumption.