Iron absorption and haemoglobin status of rats fed a ferrous bisglycinate‐fortified growing‐up milk

BACKGROUND: Infants and toddlers aged 6–24 months constitute one of the groups at highest risk of iron deficiency. A promising alternative for ferrous sulfate (FS) might be ferrous bisglycinate (FeAAC), which is less likely to cause sensory changes in the food vehicle. This work aims to compare the effect of FeAAC with that of FS, when added to a growing‐up milk, on the iron and haemoglobin status in weanling rats using a depletion–repletion model. RESULTS: After the repletion period no significant differences were found in iron absorption, Hb concentration, Hb iron, Hb regeneration efficiency (HRE), mean corpuscular volume (MCV), mean corpuscular Hb (MCH), mean corpuscular Hb concentration (MCHC), serum iron, total iron binding capacity (TIBC), transferrin saturation (TS), and ferritin between the group fed a growing‐up milk fortified with FS and the group fed one fortified with FeAAC. Furthermore, iron absorption, HRE, MCV, MCH, serum iron, and TS were significantly (P < 0.05) higher in groups fed either type of iron‐fortified growing‐up milk compared to the control group (AIN‐93G diet). CONCLUSION: A growing‐up milk supplemented with FeAAC showed an improvement in the iron absorption and haemoglobin status at the same level as those of FS. Copyright © 2009 Society of Chemical Industry