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Determination of Iron Absorption and Losses in People Living at High Altitude to Investigate the Requirements in This Population Group Using a Newly Developed Technique

NCT07142590 · Status: RECRUITING · Phase: NA · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 120

Last updated 2026-01-14

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

Iron is an essential micronutrient responsible for a whealth of biological processes of the human body. Iron plays a fundamental role especially in oxygen transport, by binding to hemoglobin in the blood circulation. Iron intake from the diet needs to be in balance the unavoidable losses that occur daily via different pathways. The recommended daily requirement of iron is based on the balance between absorption and losses and is calculated to maintain a balance so that the absorption equals losses. At higher altitudes, the absorption of iron may be higher due to adaptation mechanisms in response to low oxygen concentration, and to maintain a larger erytroid compartement. However, the long-term effects of altitude on iron balance are unknown. Filling this knowledge gap is important to better understand iron deficiency in populations living at high and moderate altitudes. Therefore, the investigators plan to study people that live at two different altitudes and measure iron absorption and losses over the long term. This will be useful to formulate specific recommendations for this population groups, to expand the knowledge base to better prevent iron deficiency in Switzerland but also worldwide. Participants will be asked to consume a dose of stable iron isotopes. After one year from isotope administration, the isotopes will be equally distributed in all body compartments and any change in the isotope abundance with the normal occurring body iron can be detected. From this point onwards, the investigators can observe the iron turnover and calculate iron absorption and losses per unit of time. At 4 different visits blood samples will be taken from each participant.

Conditions

  • Iron Absorption
  • Iron Requirements
  • Altitude

Interventions

DIETARY_SUPPLEMENT

Stable Isotopes

15 mg of stable iron isotopes in the form of ferrous sulphate 57FeSO4 will be orally administered to each participant.

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • Swiss Federal Institute of Technology

    collaborator OTHER

  • University of Lausanne

    collaborator OTHER

  • Diego Moretti

    lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

  • Diego Moretti, Prof. Dr. · Fernfachhochschule Schweiz (FFHS), SUPSI

Study Design

Allocation
NA
Purpose
PREVENTION
Masking
NONE
Model
SINGLE_GROUP

Eligibility

Min Age
18 Years
Max Age
45 Years
Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2025-08-22
Primary Completion
2028-02-29
Completion
2028-02-29

Countries

  • Switzerland

Study Locations

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Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT07142590 on ClinicalTrials.gov