Assessment of Zinc Concentration in Random Samples of the Adult Population in Shiraz, Iran

BACKGROUND Zinc is an essential micronutrient for human health. However, little is known about concentration of this mineral among Iranian population. This study was carried out to determine the current zinc status, evaluate the impact of certain factors like age, sex and Body Mass Index (BMI), and to verify the prevalence of zinc deficiency among Iranian adult population in Shiraz, southern Iran. METHODS Serum samples from 374 randomly selected healthy individuals living in Shiraz, Iran, aged 19-82 years (143 males, 231 females) were collected and the serum zinc concentration was measured by Flame-Atomic Absorption Spectrometry. We considered the subjects with serum zinc concentration less than 100 μg/dl as zinc deficient. RESULTS The serum zinc levels in females were lower than those of males with no statistically significant difference. Serum zinc concentrations were unrelated to age and BMI. It also did not change among different ages and BMI intervals. CONCLUSION About 42.5% of our cases had serum zinc concentration below the cut off value of 100 μg/dl in the serum. Designing appropriate strategies for overcoming this public health problem is necessary.