Dioxins (polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and polychlorinated dibenzo-furans) in traditional clay products used during pregnancy.

Geophagy, the practice of consuming clay or soil, is encountered among pregnant women in Africa, Eastern Asia and Latin America, but also in Western societies. However, certain types of clay are known to contain high concentrations of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs). The aim of this study was to determine the PCDD/F contents of orally consumed clays purchased from Dutch and African markets.

Lowering dietary phosphorus concentrations reduces kidney calcification, but does not adversely affect growth, mineral metabolism, and bone development in growing rabbits.

New Zealand White rabbits were used to investigate the influence of increasing dietary P concentrations on growth performance, mineral balance, kidney calcification and bone development. The minimum dietary P requirement of 0.22 % (National Research Council) is usually exceeded in commercial natural-ingredient chows, leading to undesirable kidney calcifications.

The concept of iron bioavailability and its assessment.

In this review a broad overview of historical and current methods for the assessment of iron bioavailability was given. These methods can be divided into iron solubility studies, iron absorption studies, endpoint measures, and arithmetic models. The pros and cons of all methods were discussed.

In vivo mucosal uptake, mucosal transfer and retention of iron in mice.

An improved and sensitive method for studying iron absorption in mice with alterations in body iron stores is described. Mice with varying iron status were given a double isotope-labelled test dose containing 59Fe and 51Cr as a non-absorbable indicator, via an oroesophageal needle. Using a whole-body counter it was possible to measure in vivo the initial mucosal iron uptake and long-term iron retention and to calculate mucosal iron transfer.

Dietary ascorbic acid raises iron absorption in anaemic rats through enhancing mucosal iron uptake independent of iron solubility in the digesta.

We studied Fe absorption from FeSO4 in rats with Fe deficiency-induced anaemia that were given an Fe-sufficient purified diet without or with ascorbic acid (10.4 g/kg diet). Attention was focused on mucosal Fe uptake as measured in vivo by a double-isotope technique.