Effect of Bio-fortified Zinc Wheat Flour (Zincol-2016) on the Serum Level of the Thyroid Hormones among Adolescent Girls

Abstract

Background: Hidden hunger is an alarming concern, which has affected more than 2 billion people across the globe. Of all micronutrients, zinc is necessary for different body functions. The prevalence of zinc deficiency is high in Pakistan. Different strategies to eliminate the zinc deficiency are in practice but bio-fortification is best among all. Bio-fortified zinc flour was used for the first time in Pakistan to evaluate the effect of zinc on the serum thyroid hormones level among adolescent girls.
Objective: To measure the level of thyroid hormones after the intake of biofortified zinc wheat flour (Zincol) for 6 months by the adolescent girls of low resource community setting of newly merged districts of KPK, namely Baghbanan & Shamshato.
Materials and Methods: It was a placebo control, clustered randomized controlled trial, conducted in Baghbanan (Peshawar), Shamshato (Peshawar) and Khyber Medical University, Peshawar. The study was commenced in July, 2022 and was carried till 29th December, 2023. Adolescent girls aged 10-16 years from Peshawar were divided into 2 groups, one group was receiving Galaxy variety wheat flour & the other group was receiving bio-fortified zinc wheat flour. Blood samples were collected at baseline and post intervention point (after provision of wheat flours for six months) and these samples were analyzed through ELISA procedure, to evaluate the change in the serum thyroid profile of the participants. 60 samples were used for the study. Statistical analysis was done using SPSS 22.
Results: In this research study, after the provision of Galaxy and Zincol variety wheat flour for six months, no significant change was observed in plasma zinc concentration of the two groups. Moreover, serum 'T3' and 'T4' levels were not significantly changed whereas, only serum 'TSH' levels was significantly increased (p<0.05) in Zincol group.
Conclusion: By comparative analysis between Galaxy and Zincol groups, serum 'TSH' levels were observed as significantly changed whereas, plasma zinc concentration, serum 'T3' and serum 'T4' values showed no significant changes.