Variations in iron-status measures during the menstrual cycle

Area of Science:

• Reproductive Endocrinology
• Clinical Biochemistry
• Nutritional Science

Background:

• Hormonal fluctuations during the menstrual cycle are normal physiological events.
• Iron status indicators are crucial for assessing overall health and nutritional status.
• Previous research has not fully elucidated the impact of menstrual cycle phases on these indicators.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the effect of menstrual cycle phases on iron status indicators.
• To determine if physiological changes associated with hormone fluctuations alter iron measurements.
• To assess the implications of these variations for large-scale population health surveys.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of data from 1712 women aged 18-44 years from NHANES II.
• Adjustment for potential confounding factors in statistical analysis.
• Comparison of iron-status indicators (hemoglobin, transferrin saturation, serum ferritin) across different menstrual cycle phases.

Main Results:

• Adjusted mean values for hemoglobin, transferrin saturation, and serum ferritin were lowest during menses.
• These iron indicators were highest during the luteal or late luteal phases.
• Prevalence of impaired iron status was significantly higher in the menstrual phase compared to luteal phases.

Conclusions:

• Menstrual cycle phases demonstrably affect the concentration of iron-status indicators.
• Cyclic variations in iron status markers can introduce errors in population surveys of women of reproductive age.
• Awareness of menstrual cycle timing is essential for accurate iron status assessment in women.