For pregnant women it is necessary to prescribe oral iron and folic acid supplements containing 30-60 mg elemental iron and 400 mcg (0.4 mg) of folic acid daily to prevent anemia, postpartum sepsis, low birth weight, and preterm labor.
All menstruating adolescent girls and adult women should take prophylactic dose of elemental iron (30–60 mg) daily for 3 months to reduce the risk of IDA every year.
Daily iron supplementation for school-aged children (5 years and older) living in conditions where the prevalence of anemia in infants and young children is 40% or more to prevent iron deficiency and anemia. Recommendations for prevention of IDA in infants and young children (1-3 years) of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION RECOMMENDS
- full-term babies breastfed or having mixed feeding (breast milk makes up more than half of the diet) should additionally receive 1 mg of iron per 1 kg of body weight per day, starting from 4 months of age and before the introduction of complementary foods;
- Children aged 6-12 months should receive 11 mg of iron per day. Red meat and vegetables with high iron content should be used as complementary foods. In case of insufficient intake of iron with milk mixtures or complementary foods, iron should be additionally prescribed in the form of drops or syrup;
- Children of 1-3 years should get 7 mg of iron per day, preferably in form of food containing a sufficient amount of red meat, vegetables high in iron and fruits and high in vitamin C, which enhances absorption of iron. It is also possible the additional appointment of liquid forms of iron preparations or multivitamins;
- all babies born prematurely, when breastfeeding, should receive 2 mg of iron per 1 kg of body weight per day, starting from the 1st month of life and until the transition to artificial feeding with milk formulas fortified with iron, or before introduction of complementary foods.
THE DOSE, DOSING REGIME AND A SPECIFIC MEDICATION ARE SELECTED INDIVIDUALLY, TAKING INTO ACCOUNT THE PATIENT’s CONDITION, CONCERNED DISEASES AND LABORATORY INDICATORS BY THE PHYSICIAN IN CHARGE OF CASE
