Utilization of Iron by the Chick as Influenced by Dietary Calcium and Phosphorus1

KLETZIEN (1940) presented data demonstrating that excess dietary calcium exerted an adverse effect on iron utilization by the rat. Chapman and Campbell (1957) observed that hemo-globin regeneration by anemic rats was inversely related to the level of dietary calcium. Greig (1952) reported that female breeding mice fed diets containing excess calcium developed anemia which was similar to iron-deficiency anemia. Weanlings born of mice fed excess calcium also suffered from anemia. Greig (1952) found that the effects of excess dietary calcium could be prevented by adding iron to the diet but could not be pre-vented by restoring the original calcium to phosphorus ratio through phosphorus supplementation. Waddell and Sell (1964) found that excess dietary calcium reduced hemoglobin concentration, red blood cell number and liver iron concentration of growing chickens. Dietary phosphorus has also been listed as a factor which decreases iron utilization (Demulder, 1958). Hegsted et al. (1949) and Buttner and Muhler (1959) found that iron deposition in the liver of rats was markedly reduced when high levels of phosphorus were fed. Decreased hemoglobin concentration, decreased red blood cell number and reduced retention of dietary iron by the chick were observed by Waddell and Sel