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Association Between Serum Magnesium and Anemia: China Health and Nutrition Survey

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Abstract

The role of magnesium in anemia remains unclear. We aimed to investigate the prevalence of anemia and its association with serum magnesium in a nationally representative sample. A total of 8,511 participants aged 18 years and over were recruited in this cross-sectional survey in 2009. Anemia was defined as hemoglobin concentration less than 130 g/l for men and less than 120 g/l for women. Multiple logistic regression models were applied to explore the association of magnesium and anemia. The prevalence of anemia in total was 14.0 % with 8.8 % for men and 18.5 % for women (P < 0.0001), respectively. The interaction terms between magnesium and gender and ferritin were significant (P < 0.001). In men with serum ferritin ≥15 ng/ml, compared with the first quartile of magnesium, the odds ratios (ORs) and 95 % confidence intervals (CIs) for those in the second, third, and fourth quartile of magnesium were 0.65 (0.46, 0.91), 0.77 (0.55, 1.09), and 0.63 (0.45, 0.89), respectively, after adjusting multiple confounders. Likewise, in women with serum ferritin ≥15 ng/ml, the corresponding ORs (95 % CIs) were 0.71 (0.56, 0.91), 0.64 (0.49, 0.84), and 0.53 (0.40, 0.71). The associations between magnesium and anemia were not significant in neither men nor women with serum ferritin <15 ng/ml. Serum magnesium was inversely associated with anemia in both men and women, in particular among adults with high serum ferritin levels.

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Acknowledgments

We thank the study participants and working staff for data collection. The China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS) data collection process, project design, and analysis were funded by a number of organizations. Major funding for the survey and data dissemination from 1991 to 2004 came from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) (P01-HD28076 and HD30880). Additional funding has come from NIH (HD39183), the Carolina Population Center (CPC) (in particular, CPC funded CHNS 1989), the Ford Foundation, the National Science Foundation (INT-9215399), the National Institute of Nutrition and Food Safety (formerly named Institute of Nutrition and Food Hygiene), and the Chinese Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (formerly named Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine).

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest regarding this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Public Health Safety, Ministry of Education, School of Public Health, Fudan University, Shanghai, China

    Yiqiang Zhan, Ruoqing Chen & Jinming Yu

  2. Institute of Clinical Epidemiology, School of Public Health, Fudan University, 130 Dong’An Road, Shanghai, China

    Yiqiang Zhan, Ruoqing Chen & Jinming Yu

  3. Department of Pharmacy, Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital, School of Medicine, Qingdao University, Yantai, China

    Wenwen Zheng & Chenyu Guo

  4. Department of Dermatology, Linyi People’s Hospital, Linyi, China

    Leihong Lu

  5. Shandong Medical Imaging Research Institute, Shandong University, Jinan, China

    Xiaopeng Ji

  6. Shahekou Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Dalian, China

    Zhiyuan Chi

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  1. Yiqiang Zhan
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  2. Ruoqing Chen
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  3. Wenwen Zheng
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  4. Chenyu Guo
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  5. Leihong Lu
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  6. Xiaopeng Ji
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  7. Zhiyuan Chi
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  8. Jinming Yu
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Correspondence to Jinming Yu.

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Zhan, Y., Chen, R., Zheng, W. et al. Association Between Serum Magnesium and Anemia: China Health and Nutrition Survey. Biol Trace Elem Res 159, 39–45 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-014-9967-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-014-9967-x

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