| Abstract: | ![]()
Dietary zinc intakes, selected biochemical indices of zinc status, and milk zinc concentrations were determined at monthly intervals throughout lactation for 53 middle-income lactating women, 14 of whom received a daily supplement of 15 mg zinc. Overall mean dietary zinc intake for the non-supplemented group (NZS) was 10.7 +/- 4.1 mg/day (mean +/- SD). The mean dietary zinc intake of the zinc supplemented group (ZS) was 12.2 +/- 3.5 mg/day, with an additional 12.8 +/- 1.5 mg/day from the supplement. For the NZS group, the highest mean plasma zinc concentration of 79 +/- 10 mu/dl, which occurred at month 4, was significantly less than the mean for non-lactating control women (86 +/- 10 micrograms/dl). ZS plasma zinc levels had a pattern similar to that of the NZS group for months 1-7. The rate of decline in milk zinc during lactation was significantly less for the ZS group compared to that of the NZS group (p = 0.02). It is concluded that milk zinc concentrations are influenced by maternal zinc intake within a physiological range and that the effects of low maternal intakes are most apparent with prolonged lactation. |
