Association of Salt Iodization and Urine Iodine Concentration in Schoolchildren from Public Schools in Northeast of Brazil

• Published in: Biological trace element research Vol. 199; no. 12; pp. 4423 - 4429
• Main Authors: de Oliveira Campos, Renata, Lima, Sara Cristina Rebouças, de Souza Braga Filho, Jair, de Jesus, Joice Santos, Anunciação, Sara Moreira, Martins, Gabriela Flor, de Jesus, Lorena Maia, dos Anjos Santana, Aline, de Oliveira Souza, Vanessa Cristina, Júnior, Fernando Barbosa, Ramos, Helton Estrela
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01-12-2021; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Ammonium; Ammonium compounds; Ammonium sulfate; Biochemistry; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biotechnology; Evaluation; Iodates; Iodine; Legislation; Life Sciences; Nutrient deficiency; Nutrition; Oncology; Potassium; Public schools; Risk analysis; Risk factors; Salts; Schools; Spectrophotometers; Students; Brazil; Thyroid function tests; Iodine deficiency; Sodium chloride; Dietary; Iodine
• DOI: 10.1007/s12011-020-02571-4
• EISSN: 1559-0720
• ISSN: 0163-4984

Iodine deficiency (ID) is recognized as a leading risk factor for child development. Universal salt iodization (USI) is an effective and well-established intervention strategy for the prevention of iodine deficiency disorders (IDD). To evaluate the levels of iodine in household salt samples and the urinary iodine concentration (UIC) in schoolchildren aged 6 to 14 years in public schools in Bahia, Brazil. A cross-sectional study was conducted with 1231 students (6 to 14 years old) from 17 public schools in Bahia. The iodine concentration was evaluated in salt and UIC samples. The adapted Sandell–Kolthoff reaction was used to determine urinary iodine levels. A spectrophotometer (UV-Vis) was used to examine the reduction of ceric ammonium sulfate. A standard iodine solution using a potassium iodate was used to extrapolate the iodine concentrations. The total of 665 salt samples had a median iodine concentration of 24 mg/kg (25th–75th percentile 17.0 to 28.5 mg/kg). The largest proportion (79.6%) of salt samples had iodine concentration in the recommended range, 17.6% of the samples presented iodine at a salt concentration below the established level (<15 mg/kg) and a small proportion was above it (2.8%). The general mean urinary iodine concentration (MUIC) was 217.53 ± 28.30 μg/L and median was 205.50 μg/L. The students evaluated and the salt samples analyzed showed satisfactory results, as recommended by Brazilian legislation and nutritional recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO).