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Effect of Low Zinc Intake and Oral Contraceptive Agents on Nitrogen Utilization and Clinical Findings in Young Women¹

Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of California, Berkeley, California 94720

In a previous paper we reported that serum, urine and fecal zinc levels fell markedly in women taking a combination oral contraceptive agent (+OCA) and in women with normal menstrual cycles (-OCA) when they consumed a low-zinc diet (< 0.2 mg/day) for 35 days. We evaluated other biochemical and clinical data in order to determine if depletion of accessible body zinc and/or physiologic adjustment to conserve body zinc stores had occurred. Neither low zinc intake nor oral contraceptive use appeared to influence nitrogen balance or body weight. Use of contraceptive drugs appeared to influence the response of blood parameters to zinc depletion. Serum transferrin and cholesterol declined significantly in the -OCA group, whereas alkaline phosphatase and -globulin fell significantly in the +OCA group. Serum uric acid, -2- and ß-globulin changed significantly in both groups. Clinical problems developed in all the subjects with serum zinc levels below 50 µg/dl during the study; three of the six with serum zinc levels above 50 µg/dl also complained of clinical symptoms. The results suggest that zinc deficiency through depletion of accessible body zinc stores developed during the 35-day study.

KEY WORDS: • zinc deficiency • nitrogen balance • oral contraceptive agents

¹ Supported in part by a contract from the National Institutes of Health, NIH-NICHD 72-2790.

² Present address: Procter and Gamble Co., Miami Valley Laboratories, P.O. Box 39175, Cincinnati, Ohio 45239.

³ Requests for reprints should be sent to Dr. Janet C. King.

Manuscript received 24 May 1977.

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