Higher Dietary Iron Linked to Lower Severe Aortic Calcification

A population-based study in Food, Nutrition and Health reports that higher dietary iron intake from natural food sources is linked to less severe abdominal aortic calcification in middle-aged and older U.S. adults. Researchers analyzed 2,640 participants aged 40 and above using 2013–2014 NHANES data. Severity was measured with the Kauppila score from DXA scans of the lateral lumbar spine, ranging from 0 to 24. After adjusting for demographic, socioeconomic, lifestyle, and metabolic factors, people in the highest tertile of dietary iron intake showed lower calcification scores and a reduced likelihood of severe calcification (score > 6). Severe calcification prevalence was 5.63% in the top intake group versus higher rates in the lowest intake group.