Iron and vitamin D deficiency in children living in Western-Europe Diagnostic tests, epidemiological aspects, and prevention

Iron deficiency (ID) and vitamin D deficiency (VDD) are two of the most common micronutrient deficiencies in young children worldwide and they contribute substantially to the global burden of disease due to their varied negative health consequences. Micronutrient deficiencies in European children are mostly related to the quality of their diet and not the quantity of food consumed as is the case for children from developing countries. To what extend the iron and vitamin D status of West-European children is affected, and how to improve this status, was mostly unkown thus hampering the development of population-focused preventive strategies for these children. This manuscript focused on three aspects: diagnostic tests for assessing iron status, epidemiological aspects of ID and VDD in young children and different groups of pediatric patients at risk for deficiency, and finally the effect of a micronutrient-fortified young child formula as a strategy to prevent ID and VDD in young children living in Western-Europe. Firstly, we propose a flowchart for adequately assessing iron status in children while differentiating between absolute and functional iron deficiency. Secondly, we describe prevalence rates of ID and VDD in healthy young children, moderately preterm infants, and in children with inflammatory bowel disease or diabetes type 1. Furthermore, we also describe associations with ID and VDD that clinicians can use to detect patients at risk for deficiency. Finally, we showed that micronutrient-fortified young child formula preserves the iron status and improves the vitamin D status of toddlers living in Western-Europe.