Body Mass Index (nutritional status) and concentrations of Ca, Cu, Fe, Mg, Zn, K, Na in the hair of young men from Tanzania

Background: Excess body weight has become a problem of a medical, social and cultural nature that affects a large share of the populations in nearly all countries worldwide. Little is known about the relationship between the concentrations of mineral levels in hair vs. body weight in Africans. The aim of this study was to examine the correlations between the concentrations of Ca, Cu, Fe, Mg, Zn, K, and Na in hair vs. body weight in young men from Tanzania.

Methods: The participants w ere young m en (aged 16.60 ± 1.92) f rom Tanzania (n = 91). Concentrations of Ca, Cu, Fe, Mg, Zn, K and Na in hair were measured and assessed for correlations between the levels of these trace elements and in underweight and normal weight.

Results: A statistically significant relationship of moderate intensity was found between Cu vs. body weight, BMI, Ca, Zn, Fe. Backward stepwise regression analysis for the whole group indicates that the variables included account for 27% (adjusted R2 = 0.27) of the variation in BMI. All the variables included in the equation account for 22% of BMI variation in participants with normal body weight, and for 26% in underweight participants.

Conclusions: Analysis of mineral concentrations in hair can help uncover nutritional deficiencies. It can be particularly useful in studying isolated or remote communities. Expanding the body of knowledge on the influence of mineral concentrations on body weight may contribute to halting global weight gain, which is a multi-faceted and seemingly unstoppable phenomenon at the moment.