[Iron provision and immunological responsiveness in athletic students in different seasons]

The studies of 39 highly skilled sambo wrestlers and 60 medical students from a study group ascertained that the dietary levels of iron in the students going in for sports was close to the physiological requirements in winter; it was twice less than the normal values. The daily balance of iron was negative. The trend of blood iron levels was pronouncedly seasonal. The maximum concentrations of iron in plasma and formed blood elements were noted in all the students in autumn and the minimum ones were observed in spring and especially summer months. At almost all stages of an all-year-round follow-up, the levels of iron in the plasma was lower while those in the formed elements were higher in the sportsmen than those in the untrained students. The immunological responsiveness changes largely depended on the season rather than the students' motor activity. At almost all the stages of the follow-up, the concentrations of T and B lymphocytes, phagocytic parameters, and the number of circulating immune complexes were significantly higher in highly skilled sportsmen than in the untrained students.