Objective: Obesity and iron deficiency, which are public health problems that maintain their prevalence and for which the adolescent population is particularly at risk, may have important clinical consequences. This study aimed to assess the iron parameters and blood vitamin B12 levels in obese adolescents and identify the contributing variables to the development of anemia.

Material and Methods: The present study involved a retrospective evaluation of 260 children (130 obese-130 control) who were admitted to the Ankara Children’s Haematology Oncology Training and Research Hospital, Pediatric Outpatient Clinics, between March 2013 and May 2015. Children aged 12 to 18 years without acute or chronic illnesses and body mass index (BMI) above the 95th percentile for age and gender were required for inclusion in the study group. Data from patient files were used to collect information on physical examination findings, sociodemographic characteristics, daily dietary status, and level of physical activity. All patients had evaluations for CRP, iron parameters, vitamin B12, and complete blood count.

Results: The study revealed that the obese group had significantly higher serum ferritin levels (p=0.002) and lower serum iron and vitamin B12 levels (p=0.036 and 0.047, respectively) as compared to the control group. In the obese population, elevated BMI has been demonstrated to be correlated with elevated CRP and ferritin levels.

Conclusion: Obesity’s chronic inflammation state may lead inflammatory pathophysiological pathways to activate resulting in iron deficiency and other nutritional deficiencies. Obesity should be followed up as a chronic disease and monitored in terms of nutritional deficiencies, especially in adolescents who have not completed their growth.

Keywords: Iron deficiency, obesity, adolescence