FORTIFIED CHEWING GUM TO DELIVER NEEDED NUTRIENTS AND VITAMINS
Photo: Phuong Tran/ IRIN
STRAIGHT FROM NAIROBI, 9 November 2009 (IRIN) - Some of the most widespread forms of malnutrition can best be reduced by delivering micronutrients and fortifying food in new, cost-effective ways, in combination with community outreach work, experts have said.
Approaches could range from the obvious - adding iron to flour – to the novel, such as vitamin-enriched chewing gum, a Nairobi conference heard.
Vitamin A, iron and iodine are the most important micronutrients in global public health terms, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), particularly for children and pregnant women in poor countries.
Vitamin A deficiency affects more than half of all countries, especially in Africa and Southeast Asia, and it is "especially important where under-five mortality is high," Sue Horton, a malnutrition economist, told the conference. READ FULL ARTICLE FROM IRINNEWS.COM
Approaches could range from the obvious - adding iron to flour – to the novel, such as vitamin-enriched chewing gum, a Nairobi conference heard.
Vitamin A, iron and iodine are the most important micronutrients in global public health terms, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), particularly for children and pregnant women in poor countries.
Vitamin A deficiency affects more than half of all countries, especially in Africa and Southeast Asia, and it is "especially important where under-five mortality is high," Sue Horton, a malnutrition economist, told the conference. READ FULL ARTICLE FROM IRINNEWS.COM