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Phytic Acid Degradation as a Means of Improving Iron Absorption
Abstract
Phytic acid is a potent inhibitor of native and fortification iron absorption and low absorption of iron from cereal- and/or legume-based complementary foods is a major factor in the etiology of iron deficiency in infants. Dephytinization of complementary foods or soy-based infant formulas is technically possible but, as phytic acid is strongly inhibitory at low concentrations, complete enzymatic degradation is recommended. If this is not possible, the phytic acid to iron molar ratio should be decreased to below 1:1 and preferably below 0.4:1. Complete dephytinization of cereal- and legume-based complementary foods has been shown to increase the percentage of iron absorption by as much as 12-fold (0.99% to 11.54%) in a single-meal study when the foods were reconstituted with water. The addition of milk, however, inhibits iron absorption and overcomes the enhancing effect of phytic acid degradation. Dephytinization can therefore be strongly recommended only for cereal/legume mixtures reconstituted with water, especially low-cost complementary foods destined for infants in developing countries. In countries where infant cereals are consumed with milk, ascorbic acid addition can more easily be used to overcome the negative effect of phytic acid on iron absorption. Similarly with soy-based infant formulas, especially if manufactured from low-phytate isolates, ascorbic acid can be used to ensure adequate iron absorption.
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“such as phytates and polyphenols commonly found in plant sources [258,259]”
From Nutritional Considerations for the Vegan Athlete (2023) · cites this paper as [259]
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Review on iron and its importance for human health.
Abbaspour, N., Hurrell, R. F., & Kelishadi, R. (2014) · Europe PMC (PubMed Central) · Cited by 1,886
Iron bioavailability and dietary reference values
Hurrell, R., & Egli, I. (2010) · The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition · doi:10.3945/ajcn.2010.28674f · Cited by 1,359
“4:1 to significantly improve iron absorption in plain cereal or legume-based meals that do not contain any enhancers of iron absorption, or ,6:1 in composite meals with certain vegetables that contain ascorbic acid and meat as enhancers (8, 9).”
BackgroundBiomarkers of Nutrition for Development—Folate Review
Bailey, L. B., Stover, P. J., McNulty, H., Fenech, M. F., Gregory, J. F., Mills, J. L., Pfeiffer, C. M., Fazili, Z., Zhang, M., Ueland, P. M., et al. (2015) · Journal of Nutrition · doi:10.3945/jn.114.206599 · Cited by 1,170
Zinc and its importance for human health: An integrative review.
Roohani, N., Hurrell, R. F., Kelishadi, R., & Schulin, R. (2013) · Europe PMC (PubMed Central) · Cited by 993
Schlemmer, U., Frølich, W., Prieto, R., & Grases, F. (2009) · Molecular Nutrition & Food Research · doi:10.1002/mnfr.200900099 · Cited by 910
“Numerous studies have described the negative effect of phytate on the bioavailability of minerals and trace elements [171, 205, 214–221] which recently was extensively reviewed [222–226].”
Background
Metadata
- Authors
- Hurrell
- Affiliations
- ETH Zurich (CH)
- Corresponding author
- Hurrell
- Venue
- International Journal for Vitamin and Nutrition Research
- Publisher
- IMR Press
- Published
- 2004-11-01
- Volume
- 74
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- 445-452
- ISSN
- 0020-9406 (ISSN-L)
- 0300-9831
- 1664-2821
- OpenAlex
- W1992840109
- Cited by
- 315
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 18 · 2025: 20 · 2024: 16 · 2023: 17 · 2022: 12 · 2021: 21 · 2020: 21 · 2019: 13 · 2018: 18 · 2017: 13 · 2016: 14 · 2015: 17 · 2014: 18 · 2013: 23 · 2012: 16
- FWCI
- 8.23
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- International Journal for Vitamin and Nutrition Research (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Plant Science › Phytase and its Applications
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Hematology › Iron Metabolism and Disorders
- Health Sciences › Nursing › Nutrition and Dietetics › Infant Nutrition and Health
- Keywords
- phytic acid, iron absorption, dephytinization, infant iron deficiency, complementary foods, soy-based infant formula, vitamin C, phytate degradation, cereal-legume mixtures, infant nutrition
- MeSH terms
- Absorption, Animals, Ascorbic Acid, Edible Grain, Food, Fortified, Humans, Infant, Iron, Milk, 6-Phytase, Phytic Acid, Infant Formula, Soy Foods
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