Weight status and iron deficiency among urban Malian women of reproductive age

The present study investigated the association between weight status and Fe deficiency (ID) among urban Malian women of reproductive age. Height, weight, serum ferritin (SF), soluble transferrin receptor (sTfR) and C-reactive protein (CRP) concentrations were measured in sixty apparently healthy women aged 15-49 years old in Bamako, Mali. Prevalences of overweight and obese were 19 and 9%, respectively. SF was non-significantly different between overweight (84 mu g/l) and normal-weight women (52 mu g/l). The prevalence of ID (SF < 12 mu g/l) was 9% in the overweight group and no true ID (sTfR > 8.3 mg/l) cases were recorded in the overweight and obese groups. The prevalence OR of ID (SF < 12 mu g/l) in the overweight group was NS (OR = 0.3; P=0.363). Conversely, the chronic energy deficiency group was at a significantly higher risk of ID than the normal-weight group, adjusting or not for CRP (OR = 7.7; 95% CI 1.49, 39.96; P=0.015). The lack of association between overweight and ID in the present study could be due to the fact that the excess of body fat of the women might not be critical to induce chronic inflammation related to reduced Fe absorption. Future research based on a larger convenience sample should be designed to further investigate associations between overweight, obesity and ID in developing countries.