Centre for Global Child Health, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON M5G 0A4, Canada.
Centre of Excellence in Women and Child's Health, Aga Khan University, Karachi 74800, Pakistan.
Nutrients. 2020 Jan 21;12(2):289. doi: 10.3390/nu12020289.
Micronutrient deficiencies continue to be widespread among children under-five in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), despite the fact that several effective strategies now exist to prevent them. This kind of malnutrition can have several immediate and long-term consequences, including stunted growth, a higher risk of acquiring infections, and poor development outcomes, all of which may lead to a child not achieving his or her full potential. This review systematically synthesizes the available evidence on the strategies used to prevent micronutrient malnutrition among children under-five in LMICs, including single and multiple micronutrient (MMN) supplementation, lipid-based nutrient supplementation (LNS), targeted and large-scale fortification, and point-of-use-fortification with micronutrient powders (MNPs). We searched relevant databases and grey literature, retrieving 35,924 papers. After application of eligibility criteria, we included 197 unique studies. Of note, we examined the efficacy and effectiveness of interventions. We found that certain outcomes, such as anemia, responded to several intervention types. The risk of anemia was reduced with iron alone, iron-folic acid, MMN supplementation, MNPs, targeted fortification, and large-scale fortification. Stunting and underweight, however, were improved only among children who were provided with LNS, though MMN supplementation also slightly increased length-for-age z-scores. Vitamin A supplementation likely reduced all-cause mortality, while zinc supplementation decreased the incidence of diarrhea. Importantly, many effects of LNS and MNPs held when pooling data from effectiveness studies. Taken together, this evidence further supports the importance of these strategies for reducing the burden of micronutrient malnutrition in children. Population and context should be considered when selecting one or more appropriate interventions for programming.
尽管目前已有多种有效策略可预防儿童微量营养素缺乏症,但在中低收入国家(LMICs),5 岁以下儿童仍普遍存在微量营养素缺乏问题。这种营养不良可能会产生多种直接和长期的后果,包括生长迟缓、感染风险增加以及发育不良,所有这些都可能导致儿童无法充分发挥其潜力。本综述系统综合了现有证据,评估了在 LMICs 中预防 5 岁以下儿童微量营养素缺乏症的策略,包括单一和多种微量营养素(MMN)补充、基于脂质的营养素补充(LNS)、有针对性和大规模强化以及使用微量营养素粉末进行即时强化。我们搜索了相关数据库和灰色文献,检索到 35924 篇论文。在应用资格标准后,我们纳入了 197 项独特的研究。值得注意的是,我们检查了干预措施的疗效和有效性。我们发现某些结果(如贫血)对几种干预类型有反应。单独使用铁、铁叶酸、MMN 补充、MNPs、有针对性的强化和大规模强化可降低贫血风险。然而,只有接受 LNS 补充的儿童才能改善发育迟缓或体重不足的情况,尽管 MMN 补充也略微增加了年龄别身长 Z 分数。维生素 A 补充可能降低全因死亡率,而锌补充可降低腹泻发生率。重要的是,当从有效性研究中汇总数据时,LNS 和 MNPs 的许多效果仍然存在。综上所述,这些证据进一步支持了这些策略对于减轻儿童微量营养素缺乏症负担的重要性。在选择一种或多种适合的干预措施进行规划时,应考虑人群和背景。