Iron deficiency anemia among Alaska Natives may be due to fecal loss rather than inadequate intake

To define more fully the nature of a persistently high prevalence of iron deficiency anemia observed among Alaska Native children, we examined dietary iron intake, hemoglobin concentrations, and storage iron (serum ferritin) based on multiple cross-sectional surveys of Alaska Natives between 1983 and 1989. Approximately 30 to 50% of the children studied INDEXING KEY WORDS: Alaska Natives, iron deficiency, anemia, fecal occult blood, humans