Question

Recommended dietary allowance (RDA) of iron for pregnt women is _____ mg/day.

• A. 27
• B. 29
• C. 19
• D. 23

Hint:

Always distinguish between local guidelines (like ICMR-NIN) and intertiol standards (such as US-DRI/IOM) when answering RDA questions.
The value of 27 mg/day is the standard intertiol benchmark for iron intake during pregncy.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is A

Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDA) are standard guidelines representing the daily dietary intake levels of nutrients sufficient to meet the requirements of nearly all healthy individuals in a specific life stage and gender group.
Key Principle:
During pregncy, iron requirements increase significantly to support materl red blood cell expansion, placental development, and fetal growth.

Step 2: Detailed Explation:
According to the Food and Nutrition Board of the Institute of Medicine (USA) and the globally recognized Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs), the RDA of iron for pregnt women is established at 27 mg/day.
This is a significant increase from the 18 mg/day requirement recommended for non-pregnt women of childbearing age.
Meeting this requirement through standard diet alone can be challenging because of the low bioavailability of non-heme iron in plant-based diets.
Thus, iron supplementation is routinely prescribed during the second and third trimesters of pregncy.
Although different tiol bodies (such as ICMR-NIN in India) may have local guidelines adapted to their populations, 27 mg/day remains the standard, globally recognized reference value in standard food science and nutrition textbooks.

Step 3: Fil Answer
The standard recommended dietary allowance of iron during pregncy is 27 mg/day to prevent materl anemia and support healthy fetal development.