Lucky Iron Fish

Lucky Iron Fish

I just stumbled over this. Evidently many Cambodians has a problem with anemia due to a lack of iron in their diet. A Canadian research project found a way to help alleviate the problem, and now there's an organization devoted to distributing these iron fish.

Now I'm wondering if Cambodia has always been short of iron, or whether this is a recent development. Or could it be that the problem was always there, it's just been aggravated by the enormous population growth. And if it's always been a problem, have the Cambodians developed an affinity for iron, much like the Irish?

Now I'm going to walk out on a limb and wonder if this might have something to do with the Khmer Rouge coming to power back in the 1970's.