Iron bioavailability

Abstract

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the prevalence of anemia reaches 24,8 % of the total population, existing big differences between countries and groups of population, this fact is given due to range of factors, since themselves are the inhibitors of iron absorption; which reduce the bioavailability of the micronutrient. The bioavailability is the fraction of consumed nutrients that is available for use in normal and physiological functions and for the storage; different from bioaccessibility, which is the quantity of nutrient released by the food counterfoil and which is accessible for its absorption. On the other hand, in order to determine the bioavailability of a nutrient, in vitro models are in use, simulating digestion, models in live as much in animals (principally mice) as in human beings, and mathematical models. This article seeks to expose the factors that the bioavailability and the models affect used to determine it.