Iron-deficient anemic infants at play

The purpose of this study was to determine whether iron-deficient anemic infants show affective and attentional disturbances during play. The behavior of 21 iron-deficient anemic and 21 non-anemic 6-to 24-month-old Guatemalan infants and their mothers was analyzed during a videotaped 8-minute free-play session. There were no statistically significant differences between the two groups in measures of infant irritability, distractibility, or apathy. There were differences, however, in measures of spatial relations. In 71 % of the anemic infants, the duration of child-initiated body contact with their mothers was high, compared with a high level of contact in only 26% of the nonanemic babies (p =< 0.01). Mothers of anemic infants spent less time at a distance from them, were less likely to break close contact, and were more likely to reestablish close contact if the baby moved away (p < 0.03). The increase in body contact was interpreted as a reflection of fearfulness, hesitance, or inactivity. The results suggest that the specific behavioral manifestations of iron deficiency anemia in infancy may vary with the context, differing in free play and structured developmental testing.