The acute oral toxicity of reduced iron.

The LD(50) +/- S.E. of Reduced Iron, N.F. IX, given orally to albino rats was found to be 98.6 +/- 26.7 g. per kg. body weight, or over a hundredfold that of iron given as ferrous sulfate. The clinical and pathological signs of toxicity were somewhat similar to those of ferrous sulfate given under the same conditions. The results indicate that reduced iron could stand reinvestigation in respect of its practical value as a therapeutic agent with probably very low toxicity.