Washington, DC, June 13–17, 2011
Innovations in micronutrient powder programs: opportunities to reduce child anemia
On Wednesday, June 15, the IYCN Project joined partners for a satellite session on innovations in micronutrient powder (MNP) programming to reduce anemia and improve the health of infants and young children.
Panelists discussed opportunities for leveraging existing health and nutrition programs to integrate MNPs, and shared innovative approaches for using these products to improve child feeding practices in Bangladesh, Bolivia, and Mongolia. The event opened with hors d’oeuvres and an MNP exhibit.
Panelists:
- Tom Schaetzel, IYCN Project, Child Anemia: Scope, consequences, and solutions
- Carolyn MacDonald, World Vision, National Scale-up of Micronutrient Powders in Mongolian Integrated Program—Innovations in Micronutrient Powder Programs: Opportunities to Reduce Child Anaemia
- Ali MacLean, Micronutrient Initiative, National Distribution of MNP in Bolivia
- Marcia Griffiths, IYCN Project, The Manoff Group, Improved Complementary Feeding Practices with MNP: Blending two parallel programs into one
Addressing barriers to healthy child feeding in Malawi
On June 14, Janet Guta, IYCN Country Coordinator, Malawi, presented a poster on findings from the IYCN-led Malawi Infant and Young Child Feeding Study.
We aimed to increase our understanding of rural families’ feeding practices for children ages 6 months to 2 years of age, identify problems that impede adequate dietary intake in children, and test practices that mothers are able to adopt in order to improve infant and young child feeding using their own resources. 
Our findings revealed that with only basic counseling support, mothers could adopt many new feeding practices, such as preparing less watery porridge, substituting fruit for biscuits and sugary drinks, adding vegetables to porridge, increasing meal amounts, prolonging breastfeeding by emptying one breast and then offering the other, and feeding food from animal sources more often. The changes resulted in substantial increases in energy, protein, and vitamins A and C. This new understanding of current feeding practices, as well as the social, cultural, and economic contexts influencing these practices is informing the design of new and existing national programs to promote improved child feeding and ensure healthy futures.
Download a handout of the Malawi poster.
Date: Jun 13, 2011 | Category: Events