• Ali Malekshahi Moghadam, Mahboobeh Mehrabani Natanzi, Mahmoud Djalali, Ahmad Saedisomeolia, Mohammad Hassan Javanbakht, Ali Akbar Saboor-Yaraghi, and Mahnaz Zareei.
• Department of Nutrition and Biochemistry, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
• Sao Paulo Med J. 2013 Jan 1; 131 (6): 377383377-83.

Context And ObjectiveRegular blood donation may decrease body iron storage and lead to anemia. The aim here was to evaluate the iron status of Iranian male blood donors and the impact of age, body mass index (BMI) and donation frequency over one year, on iron status indices.Design And SettingCross-sectional, descriptive and analytical study at Tehran Blood Transfusion Center, Tehran, Iran.MethodsBetween July and September 2011, 117 male blood donors were selected and divided into four groups according to their frequency of blood donation. Thirty male non-donors were also recruited as controls after adjusting for age, weight, height, smoking habits and monthly income. Iron status indices and some criteria such as general health and dietary measurements were determined among all subjects.ResultsThe values of the iron-related parameters were significantly lower among donors than among non-donors. Only total iron binding capacity (TIBC) was found to be significantly higher among different donor groups than in the controls. A significant positive correlation was observed between age and serum ferritin (SF) only among the donors who had donated once within the preceding year. The iron status indices did not show any significant relationship with BMI among donors or non-donors.ConclusionA donation frequency of more than twice a year had a significant influence on iron-related parameters. Therefore, without annual measurement of these parameters, further phlebotomies may lead to iron deficiency and donor rejection in the future.

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