Magnitude of Urinary Iron Excretion in Healthy Men

Abstract

Henriques and Roland1 have found that the daily excretion of iron in the urine of both normal and pathological cases is very small, amounting to only 0.08 to 0.32 mg. These values are much lower than those reported by earlier workers. Lintzel,2 however, has claimed that not more than 0.02 mg. of iron per liter can be found in normal urine. Likewise, other investigators3 have found the urine of patients suffering from various diseases to be practically iron-free. Because of its bearing on problems relating to the metabolism of iron we have investigated anew the question of the magnitude of the urinary iron excretion.The urine was obtained in clean bottles from male subjects who were pursuing their usual routine in the laboratory. In brief, the analytical procedure consisted of the following steps: A measured volume, usually 500 cc, of the fresh 24-hour urine specimen was evaporated to dryness in a silica dish, and then incinerated in an electric furnace at about 500° C. for 8 hours. The ash was dissolved i...