ENAGenomicsSwedish Defense Research Agancyhttps://www.ebi.ac.uk/ena/browser/view/PRJNA475589Iron is an essential nutrient for infants and gut bacteria alike. Iron supplementation and/or fortification to anemic infants have led to an underrepresentation of important commensals e.g. bifidobacteria and lactobacilli and overrepresentation of enteropathogens.In healthy, non-anemic infants, administration of iron as drops, even in a dose comparable to the daily iron requirement and for a short time, leads to a decreased relative abundance of lactobacilli and potentially increases susceptibility to bacterial infection.Even a low dose of iron administered as drops may have unwarranted effects on the composition of gut microbiota. This calls for caution regarding iron supplementation of healthy, non-anemic infants. Providing pre- or probiotics may alleviate this issue.ENAfalsehuman gut metagenomeAdministration of iron as drops has significant effects on the gut microbiota of iron-sufficient infants: a randomized controlled study2023-05-192019-06-04PRJNA475589