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Ferric Pyrophosphate-fortified Rice Given Once Weekly Does not Increase Hemoglobin Levels in Preschoolers

Francisco Placido, Nogueira Arcanjo, Paulo Roberto Santos, Sergio Duarte Segall

Background: The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of rice fortified with iron (Ultrarice®), given once weekly, and on hemoglobin levels and anemia prevalence compared with standard rice.
Methods: In this prospective quasi-experimental study, we evaluated preschoolers aged 2 to 5 years (n=303) from 2 public schools in Sobral, Brazil. Intervention lasted 18 weeks. The once weekly 50 g individual portion (uncooked) of fortified rice provided 56.4 mg of elemental iron as ferric pyrophosphate. Capillary blood samples to test for hemoglobin levels were taken at baseline and after intervention. Student’s t-test was used to assess the difference in hemoglobin within / between the groups.
Results: For fortified rice school: baseline mean hemoglobin was 12.06 ± 1.01 g/dL, and after intervention 12.14 ± 1.06 g/dL, p=0.52; anemia prevalence was 8.9% (11/120) at baseline, and 10.5% (13/120) at end of study, p=0.67. For the standard rice school: baseline mean hemoglobin was 12.40 ± 4.14 g/dL, and after intervention 12.29 ± 2.48, p=0.78; anemia prevalence was 20.8% (30/144) at baseline, and 37.5% (54/144) at the end of study, p=0.002. Considering only anemic participants, there was a significant increase in hemoglobin means before and after intervention, p=0.003 in the fortified rice school. Relative Risk was 0.29 and the Number Needed to Treat was 4.
Conclusions: This study shows that consumption of the iron-fortified rice compared to the control rice does not change hemoglobin or anemia prevalence in preschoolers.