Nutritional status of adolescent girls in regard to zinc, copper, and iron

Abstract

Adolescent girls in the sixth through eighth grades were surveyed for dietary intake and nutritional status in regard to zinc, copper, and iron in both the fall of 1975 and the spring of 1976. The adolescents (183 girls in the fall and 184 girls in the spring) consumed on the average 60 and 75% of the Recommended Dietary Allowances for iron and zinc, respectively. The mean concentration of zinc in hair samples was 216 ± 64 µg/g in the fall and 191 ± 36 µg/g in the spring. The mean concentration of copper in hair samples was 31 ± 23 µg/g. None of the girls had a concentration of zinc in their hair samples of less than 100 µg/g. Hair concentrations of zinc and copper were significantly correlated, but serum and hair concentrations of zinc were inversely correlated. However, in subsample of 102 girls, 3% had serum zinc levels below 70 µg/100 ml and 4% had serum copper levels below 70 µg/100 ml. Only 1% of the subjects had a hematocrit below 36%. No significant difference in any of these parameters was noted between girls who had experienced menarche and those who had not.