July 2012

Most Americans are getting enough of the nutrients important for health, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But a few “concerning” deficiencies do stand out in the findings, which analyzed 58 biomarkers in blood and urine samples collected in national health and nutrition surveys from 1999-2006. Non-Hispanic blacks were prone to vitamin D deficiency, with 31% at low levels. Iron deficiency was seen among young Mexican-American children (11%), non-Hispanic blacks (16%), and Mexican- American women of childbearing age (13%). Low levels of iodine, just above insufficiency, were seen in young women ages 20-39; this is of particular concern because iodine is important for fetal brain development. On the other hand, the study found that folate deficiency is now nearly non-existent, below 1%; before folate fortification of grain products to combat birth defects, about 12% of women of childbearing age were deficient.