Although the supplementary value of copper with iron as a necessary catalytic agent in the formation of hemoglobin in experimental animals is generally accepted, some investigators feel that this has not been proved satisfactorily for infants. Since we found that approximately 21 per cent of the infants brought to the child health centers of Madison, Wis., during the past year tended to become anemic during their first year of life, the problem of the most efficacious method of treating anemia seems to be one of utmost importance.
This report compares the effect of iron alone as a therapeutic agent with that of iron supplemented with copper. In a recent paper, Elvehjem, Siemers and Mendenhall1 showed that iron plus copper therapy caused an increase in the hemoglobin content of the blood from between 9 and 11 Gm. to 12 and 13.5 Gm. per hundred cubic centimeters. However, Mackay2 reported