Table 2.
Biochemical levels and prevalence of retinol and alpha‐tocopherol deficiency in the total group of lactating women and in cut‐off points for serum
| Substance | Biochemical information | Total group (n = 103) | Serum cut‐off point | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| <1.05 µmol L−1 (n = 16) | ≥1.05 µmol L−1 (n = 87) | |||
| ROH | Serum ROH* | 1.49 ± 0.4 | 0.84 ± 0.17 | 1.61 ± 0.35 |
| Colostrum ROH* | 2.18 ± 0.8 | 1.87 ± 0.72 | 2.25 ± 0.79 | |
| Serum deficiency † [n (%)] | 16 (16) | 16 (100) | 0.0 (0.0) | |
| Colostrum deficiency ‡ [n (%)] | 52 (50) | 12 (81) | 30 (34) | |
| <16.2 µmol L−1 (n = 15) | ≥16.2 µmol L−1 (n = 88) | |||
| Serum TOH* | 26.4 ± 8.0 | 12.8 ± 2.7 | 28.7 ± 6.08 | |
| TOH | Colostrum ROH* | 26.1 ± 12.8 | 25.7 ± 12.2 | 28.24 ± 16.1 |
| Serum deficiency § [n (%)] | 15 (16) | 15 (100) | 0.0 (0.0) | |
| Colostrum deficiency ¶ [n (%)] | 59 (61) | 10 (66) | 39 (44) | |
ROH, retinol; TOH, alpha‐tocopherol. *Mean ± standard deviation. †Prevalence of serum vitamin A deficiency based on a cut‐off point of 1.05 µmol L−1 for serum retinol. ‡Prevalence of colostrum vitamin A deficiency based on a cut‐off point of 2.09 µmol L−1 for colostrum retinol. §Prevalence of serum vitamin E deficiency based on a cut‐off point of 16.2 µmol L−1 for serum alpha‐tocopherol. ¶Prevalence of colostrum vitamin E deficiency based on a cut‐off point of 26.1 µmol L−1 established for colostrum alpha‐tocopherol.