Micronutrient gaps during the complementary feeding period in seven countries in Southeast Asia: A Comprehensive Nutrient Gap Assessment.

The complementary feeding period is a critical stage of child development when micronutrient needs are high and challenging to meet. Understanding if specific micronutrient gaps exist during this period is critical for effective programming. A Comprehensive Nutrient Gap Assessment (CONGA) was conducted in seven countries in Southeast Asia to estimate gaps in micronutrients commonly lacking in the diets of children aged 6-23 months and to establish the certainty of available evidence for each identified gap.

First foods in a packaged world: Results from the COMMIT consortium to protect young child diets in Southeast Asia.

Although commercially produced complementary foods (CPCFs) are increasingly sold throughout Southeast Asia, concerns have been raised about CPCFs nutritional quality, labelling practices and the strength and scope of national CPCF regulations. The Consortium for Improving Complementary Foods in Southeast Asia (COMMIT), composed of UN agencies and civil society organizations, was formed to assess the nutrient gap in the diets of young children and the consumer, product and policy landscapes for CPCFs in seven Southeast Asian countries. Results from a nutrient gap assessment indicate that the diets of children aged 6-23 months are suboptimal and deficient in micronutrients.

Micronutrient-fortified rice improves haemoglobin, anaemia prevalence and cognitive performance among schoolchildren in Gujarat, India: a case-control study.

Anaemia is a public health problem in India. A case-control, quasi-experimental study was conducted to evaluate the effect of a multiple micronutrient fortified rice intervention among school children (6-12 years) through the midday meal programme in Gujarat, India, over 8 months. The fortified rice provided approximately 10% Recommended Dietary Allowance of iron; 25-33% of vitamin A, thiamine, niacin and vitamin B6; and 100% of folic acid and vitamin B12.

Strengthening health systems in low-income countries by enhancing organizational capacities and improving institutions.

Background: This paper argues that the global health agenda tends to privilege short-term global interests at the expense of long-term capacity building within national and community health systems. The Health Systems Strengthening (HSS) movement needs to focus on developing the capacity of local organizations and the institutions that influence how such organizations interact with local and international stakeholders.

Discussion: While institutions can enable organizations, they too often apply requirements to follow paths that can stifle learning and development.

Toward a consensus on guiding principles for health systems strengthening.

Based upon a review of the literature, Robert Chad Swanson and colleagues present a set of guiding principles for health systems strengthening.