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Ferrous fumarate is currently recommended for use in the fortification of foods for infants and young children. This recommendation is based on the compound's good sensory properties and on results from isotope studies in adults that reported similar iron absorption values for ferrous fumarate and ferrous sulphate (relative bioavailability [RBV] of ferrous fumarate, 100). However, later isotope studies conducted on both iron-replete and iron-deficient young children found that iron absorption from ferrous fumarate was only about 30% of that achieved from ferrous sulphate (RBV, 30). The reasons for the differences observed in adults compared with children are unclear but could be related to the following factors: lower iron status in children resulting in greater iron absorption via upregulation from ferrous sulphate but not from ferrous fumarate; reduced gastric acid secretion in children leading to retarded dissolution of ferrous fumarate; or an influence of added ascorbic acid on RBV. Ferrous fumarate-fortified complementary foods have been demonstrated to improve iron status in iron-deficient infants and, more recently, to prevent iron deficiency equally as well as ferrous sulphate in iron-replete infants. However, current evidence indicates that iron-deficient infants and young children may absorb iron from ferrous fumarate less well than iron from ferrous sulfate and that, for equivalent efficacy, complementary foods targeted at such infants and young children should contain more iron in the form of fumarate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study compared the gastrointestinal (GI) absorption characteristics and absolute bioavailability of fenofibric acid and fenofibrate (which is converted to fenofibric acid in vivo) in healthy volunteers. Treatments were delivered to the proximal small bowel, distal small bowel, and colon using a site-specific delivery system (Enterion capsule) and to the stomach by oral administration of equimolar doses. Serial blood samples were collected for 120 hours postdose and assayed for plasma fenofibric acid concentrations. The absolute bioavailability of each treatment was determined relative to 50 mg of fenofibric acid administered intravenously. Plasma exposure to fenofibric acid following fenofibric acid administration was approximately 1.5 times higher than that following fenofibrate administration for delivery to the proximal and distal small bowel and following oral administration, and it was approximately 5 times higher following colon delivery. The absolute bioavailability in the stomach, proximal small bowel, distal small bowel, and colon was approximately 81%, 88%, 84%, and 78%, respectively, for fenofibric acid and 69%, 73%, 66%, and 22%, respectively, for fenofibrate (P < .0001 and P = .033 for fenofibric acid vs fenofibrate in the colon and distal small bowel, respectively). In conclusion, fenofibric acid is well absorbed throughout the GI tract and has greater bioavailability than fenofibrate in all GI regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Commercial coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10, ubiquinone) formulations are often of poor intestinal absorption. The relative bioavailability of CoQ10 has been shown in National Institutes of Health-funded clinical trials to be increased by its delivery system. We investigated the bioavailability of a new COQ10 formulation based on a new and patented technology, VEgIsorb, with 3 other commercially available CoQ10 products, an oil-based formulation and 2 solubilizates. This new CoQ10 formulation (commercially branded CoQsource) is a lipid-based formulation that naturally self-assembles on contact with an aqueous phase into an association colloid delivery system (hereafter "colloidal-Q10"). Twenty healthy male and female subjects participated in a double-blind, comparative (parallel design), controlled, single