Full Length Research Paper

Inclusion of marine fish in traditional meals improved iodine status of children in an iodine deficient area

Amund Maage¹*, Jogeir Toppe^1,2, Mathilda Steiner-Asiedu^3,4, Ebenezer Asibey- Berko³ and Einar Lied^1,5

¹National Institute of Nutrition and Seafood Research, Box 2029 Nordnes, N-5817, Bergen, Norway.

²FAO, Fisheries and Aquaculture Department, Viale delle Terme di Caracalla, 00153 Rome, Italy.

³Department of Nutrition and Food Science, University of Ghana, Legon, Ghana.

⁴Brown University, Bio-Med Institute of Community Health Promotion, Providence 02912, RI, USA.

⁵Nutrimarine Life Science AS, Bontelabo 2, N-5003 Bergen, Norway.

*Corresponding author. E-mail: ama@nifes.no.

Accepted  27  March, 2008

   Abstract

The present study was carried out in an iodine deficient area in Northern Ghana, and the purpose of the study was: (1) to undertake a food dietary survey on school children in an iodine deficient area, (2) measure the iodine content in the staple food of this area, (3) carry out an intervention study with a traditional food supplemented with marine fish as a natural iodine source. Sixty school children, in the village of Sekoti in the Upper-East region of Ghana, participated in the study. The dietary survey was performed as repeated 24 h recall, and staple foods were analysed for iodine by ICP-MS. A traditional diet fortified with 10% codfish-powder was given to the children every day for two weeks, and iodine status was measured before and after the intervention. The foodstuffs normally eaten by the children contained little iodine. However, beans prepared at a market nearby had surprisingly high values of iodine, explained by the addition of saltpetre, which contained very high amounts of iodine. About 60% of the children in the study area had goitre and the prevalence was highest among girls. Following the intervention period, the urinary iodine concentration was significantly increased and the TSH level in serum was significantly decreased, indicating an elevated iodine status. The children having goitre had the strongest tendency to elevate their iodine status.

Key words: Iodine, fish, goitre, urinary iodine, TSH.