Effect of lotus stem balls on the iron status of adolescent girls

Lotus stem, flaked rice, groundnut and palm jaggery were selected, Lotus Stem Balls were prepared and evaluated organoleptically. LSB3 was chosen for supplementation. One hundred adolescent girls (18 years) volunteered for the study. General background details, diet pattern, meal skipping pattern, frequency of iron rich food intake and anthropometric measurements were collected. Anemic subsamples (experimental = 6, Control =6) were chosen for indepth study. Twenty four hour recall was done and their nutrient intake was calculated. Forty five grams of LSB3 containing 18.45mg of iron was supplemented to anemic girls for a period of 55 days. Hematological parameters were analyzed before and after supplementation.