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An assessment of the iodine and selenium content of cow's milk produced in Northern Ireland

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 November 2016

S.M. O'Kane ,
L.K. Pourshahidi ,
M.S Mulhern ,
R.R. Weir ,
S. Hill ,
J. O'Reilly ,
D. Kmiotek ,
C. Deitrich ,
E.M. Mackle  and
E. Fitzgerald
...Show all authors
S.M. O'Kane
Affiliation:
Northern Ireland Centre for Food and Health (NICHE), University of Ulster, Cromore Road, Coleraine, BT52 1SA
L.K. Pourshahidi
Affiliation:
Northern Ireland Centre for Food and Health (NICHE), University of Ulster, Cromore Road, Coleraine, BT52 1SA
M.S Mulhern
Affiliation:
Northern Ireland Centre for Food and Health (NICHE), University of Ulster, Cromore Road, Coleraine, BT52 1SA
R.R. Weir
Affiliation:
Northern Ireland Centre for Food and Health (NICHE), University of Ulster, Cromore Road, Coleraine, BT52 1SA
S. Hill
Affiliation:
LGC Queens Road, Teddington, Middlesex TW11 0LY
J. O'Reilly
Affiliation:
LGC Queens Road, Teddington, Middlesex TW11 0LY
D. Kmiotek
Affiliation:
LGC Queens Road, Teddington, Middlesex TW11 0LY
C. Deitrich
Affiliation:
LGC Queens Road, Teddington, Middlesex TW11 0LY
E.M. Mackle
Affiliation:
Northern Ireland Centre for Food and Health (NICHE), University of Ulster, Cromore Road, Coleraine, BT52 1SA
E. Fitzgerald
Affiliation:
Northern Ireland Centre for Food and Health (NICHE), University of Ulster, Cromore Road, Coleraine, BT52 1SA Athlone Institute of Technology, Dublin Road, Athlone, Co. Westmeath, Ireland
J.J. Strain
Affiliation:
Northern Ireland Centre for Food and Health (NICHE), University of Ulster, Cromore Road, Coleraine, BT52 1SA
A.J. Yeates
Affiliation:
Northern Ireland Centre for Food and Health (NICHE), University of Ulster, Cromore Road, Coleraine, BT52 1SA
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Abstract

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Cow's milk is the most important dietary source of iodine and it also contributes to dietary selenium intakes in many European countries, including the UK and Ireland(Reference Bates1–4). Iodine and selenium are necessary for the maintenance of thyroid hormone homeostasis and have important roles in growth and development(Reference Arthur and Beckett5). While the UK and Ireland were historically thought to be iodine sufficient, emerging evidence shows that many of the population are now iodine deficient(Reference Nawoor6, Reference Vanderpump7). The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of season, milk fat class and pasteurisation on iodine and selenium concentrations in Northern Ireland (NI) milk.

Milk samples (unpasteurised, whole, semi-skimmed and skimmed) were collected from two large NI creameries between May 2013 and April 2014. Monthly samples of each milk type were analysed by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) for iodine and selenium content.

Table 1.

outlines the iodine and selenium concentrations according to milk fat class, stage of pasteurisation and season.

* P value for comparison between groups from independent t test or one-way ANOVA

† Mean of skimmed, semi-skimmed and whole milk samples

‡ Samples were collected pre-pasteurisation and pre-homogenisation

a,b,c values within a column with different superscript letters represent significance (P < 0·05).

This study provides an updated assessment of iodine and selenium concentrations in NI produced cow's milk. Season was found to have an important determining effect on the iodine, but not the selenium, content of cow's milk. The observed seasonal variation in iodine is likely to reflect the change in animal feeding practices across seasons(Reference Flachowsky8). Iodine and selenium concentrations in milk were not affected by the milk fat class or by pasteurisation. The iodine and selenium concentrations reported in this study are higher than those listed in food composition databases highlighting the need for further analysis to update these data(9). As cow's milk is the main dietary source of iodine in the UK and Ireland, the seasonal variation in the iodine content of milk is likely to impact iodine intake and thus status across the year.

References

1.Bates, et al. (2014) National Diet and Nutrition SurveyGoogle Scholar
2.Rasmussen, et al. (2002) Br J Nutr. 87 (1): 61–69.10.1079/BJN2001474Google Scholar
3.Dahl, et al. (2003) Public Health Nutr. 7 (4):569–576.10.1079/PHN2003554Google Scholar
4.Food Safety Authority of Ireland (2011) Report on a Total Diet Study.Google Scholar
5.Arthur, & Beckett, (1999) Brit Med Bull 55 (3): 658–668.10.1258/0007142991902538Google Scholar
6.Nawoor, et al. (2006) Ir J Med Sci 175 (2): 21–24.Google Scholar
7.Vanderpump, et al. (2011) Lancet 377 (9782): 2007–2012.Google Scholar
8.Flachowsky, et al. (2014) Eur J Nutr 53 (2): 351–365.10.1007/s00394-013-0597-4Google Scholar
9.Food Standards Agency (2015) McCance and Widdowson's The Composition of Foods.Google Scholar
Figure 0

Table 1. outlines the iodine and selenium concentrations according to milk fat class, stage of pasteurisation and season.