Micronutrient

Reports

Mother feeds her child food with MNPs

SPRING organized a Micronutrient Powders (MNP) Consultation on October 19–20, 2015 to summarize, review, and analyze real experiences in MNP programming for children 6–23 months of age.

Keywords: Micronutrient
Photo of an infant girl

USAID's SPRING project conducted formative research from June 9-13, 2014 in Namutumba, Uganda to determine the emotional and logical barriers to buying and using micronutrient powders (MNPs...

Keywords: Micronutrient
Location: Uganda

Galleries

VHTs at the SPRING booth

On March 15th, 2015 in Nsinze Sub-Country, Namutumba District, Uganda’s Ministry of Health—in conjunction with Namutumba District leadership, SPRING, World Food Programme, and UNICEF—...

Keywords: Anemia, Micronutrient
Location: Uganda
Launch of the Vitamin and Mineral Powder Program in Uganda

SPRING/Uganda, the Government of Uganda, UNICEF, and the WFP launched the Vitamin and Mineral Powder Program to address micronutrient deficiencies through home food fortification.

Keywords: Micronutrient
Location: Uganda

News

Namutumba MNP launch participants

The Ministry of Health, in conjunction with Namutumba District leadership and the SPRING project, host a launch event in Namutumba District.

Keywords: Anemia, Micronutrient
Location: Uganda
Screen Capture of the Sierra Leone Micronutrient Survey Cover

SPRING attended the release of Sierra Leone’s micronutrient survey, which found that iron may be only a minor cause of the country's high anemia prevalence.

Dr. Boyo signs the commemorative micronutrient powder sachet (Photo credit Abel Muzoora )

The program aims to address micronutrient deficiencies through home food fortification.

Keywords: Micronutrient
Location: Uganda
Vitamin A Plus Campaign inauguration by the Upazila Health & Family Planning Officer in Barisal Division

SPRING and the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in Bangladesh celebrated the National Vitamin A Plus Campaign as part of on-going, national efforts to raise awareness about diseases...

Keywords: Micronutrient
Location: Bangladesh

Technical Areas

SPRING is bringing together program implementers to synthesize the evidence around implementation and provide global guidance to programs that plan to use micronutrient powders.

Keywords: Micronutrient

Events

Area logo

Two speakers, one from a programming and another from a research perspective on IFA use, will present their experiences on antenatal supplementation in Kenya.

Keywords: Anemia, Supplementation, Micronutrient
Location: Online
Agricultural demonstration on planting groundnuts in rows

Micronutrient deficiency continues to undermine public health and prosperity in developing countries.

Series

Diagram showing how anemia can be prevented across the lifespan

SPRING has developed a series of National Anemia Profiles, which provide country-specific information on the causes and burden of anemia, the policy environment, and program indicators. The...

Keywords: Anemia, Micronutrient

Activities

Point-of-Use Fortification in Uganda

SPRING is supporting the rollout of a micronutrient power (MNP) program among children 6-23 months in one pilot district of Uganda.

Keywords: Fortification, Micronutrient, Anemia
Location: Uganda

A2Z Resources

National Nutrition Program: Village Volunteer Micro-nutrient Module

This job aid, developed for village volunteers, includes information on a variety of nutrition practices for mothers and young children.

Micronutrient Deficiencies and Interventions in Cambodia: Information for Improved Programming

Despite a growing economy and improvement in living conditions, Cambodia has a higher maternal mortality rate and an equal rate of child under-five mortality compared to Bangladesh.

Keywords: Anemia, Micronutrient
Location: Cambodia
Success in Delivering Interventions to Reduce Maternal Anemia in Nepal

Anemia has been recognized as a serious public health problem in Nepal for many years. In 2004 the Government of Nepal launched the Intensification of Maternal and Neonatal Micronutrient...

Keywords: Anemia, Micronutrient
Location: Nepal
Micronutrients Global Toolkit

The Micronutrients Global Toolkit includes a set of tools developed by the A2Z Project and partners to support governments in their efforts to ensure sustainable Vitamin A supplementation...

Tools for Strengthening Country-led Interventions to Reduce Micronutrient Malnutrition

This document, produced by the A2Z Project, is a catalogue of guidelines, tools, and training and advocacy materials developed as part of their partnership with Cambodia’s National...

Keywords: Anemia, Micronutrient
Location: Cambodia

Pages

Resource Review Summaries

GAIN Executive Director Lawrence Haddad eloquently summarizes the key issues related to operationalizing micronutrient powders (MNP), drawing on information from SPRING’s report on a global...

Keywords: Anemia, Micronutrient

In this study, researchers compare sachet count or self-reporting forms to electronic devices for measuring adherence to daily home fortification with micronutrient powders (MNP) and...

Keywords: Anemia, Fortification, Micronutrient
Location: Kenya

This study assessed anthropometric measurements and developmental and laboratory outcomes in children born to women who received daily iron and folic acid (IFA) supplementation, twice...

This study assessed the impact of a local animal-sourced food (ASF) supplement on the micronutrient status of rural, Vietnamese women aged 18-30 years. Participants of this study were given...

Keywords: Anemia, Micronutrient
Location: Vietnam

Biofortification to address nutrient deficiencies unites agriculture and nutrition to improve the health and livelihoods of smallholder farming families – still the majority of the...

This study, conducted in The Gambia, explored the protective nature of iron deficiency anemia against malaria. Findings showed that anemia, more so than sickle-cell trait, hindered the...

Keywords: Anemia, Micronutrient, Supplementation
Location: Gambia

A new trial has been designed to examine how the timing of micronutrient powder (MNP) interventions can impact iron absorption and consequently iron and anemia status in infants. The...

Keywords: Micronutrient

In Thailand, many of the local source foods do not meet the nutritional needs of children, which can lead to deficiencies in micronutrients such as iron – a major cause of anemia. Thai...

Keywords: Anemia, Micronutrient, Fortification
Location: Thailand

The World Health Organization released global guidance on micronutrient powders (MNP) for children aged 6-23 months and 2-12 years. The guideline recommends MNP with complementary foods for...

Micronutrient deficiencies are prevalent in crops and people in sub-Saharan Africa. Agronomic biofortification can increase yields and micronutrient contents of these crops, but there is a...

The Micronutrient Forum Global Conference took place in Cancun on October 24 – 28, 2016. The theme of the event was prioritizing women’s nutrition in order to achieve the Sustainable...

Keywords: Anemia, Micronutrient, Multi-sector
Location: Mexico

Holly McKee, of Bioanalyt, tells of her experience supporting data collection to evaluate Helen Keller International’s Enhanced Homestead Food Production (EHFP) program in Indonesia. The...

The Micronutrient Initiative (MI), in collaboration with the Government of Canada, launched the Right Start program in Senegal, with the goal of reducing anemia in women and adolescent...

This document provides the most recent WHO guidelines for use of iron supplementation in postpartum women. The guidelines review evidence on safety and effectiveness to support policy-...

Keywords: Anemia, Micronutrient

The Home Fortification Technical Advisory Group (HF-TAG) has released a revision to their Toolkit, which guides program planning for Micronutrient Powders (MNP). The toolkit complements...

Keywords: Anemia, Micronutrient

This study investigated whether text message reminders improved the efficacy of micronutrient powder in western China. Children 6 to 12 months were assigned to receive MNP and text message...

Keywords: Anemia, Micronutrient
Location: China

In this study, researchers assessed absorption of therapeutic iron among children in Uganda that were given antimalarial treatment. Children aged 6-59 months with both malaria and anemia...

Keywords: Anemia, Fortification, Micronutrient
Location: Uganda

This systematic literature search explored whether children aged 6 to 23 months can fulfill their nutrient needs by consuming locally sourced foods. The results suggested that complementary...

On January 30, 2016, Peru’s Ministry of Health came together with the Ministry of Education for an event on anemia prevention. The event targeted mothers who coordinate communal kitchens in...

In this video, Binu Cherian and Parminder Virk of HarvestPlus discuss why biofortification can be an effective measure to help address micronutrient deficiencies, especially as a...

The World Health Organization (WHO) published global guidance on micronutrient powders (MNP) for point-of-use fortification of foods consumed by pregnant women. The guideline recommends...

Keywords: Anemia, Micronutrient

This study examined the impact of nutrition and hygiene interventions on stunting in full-term low-birthweight infants. Researchers found that hand sanitizer, combined with nutrition,...

Keywords: Anemia, Micronutrient
Location: Bangladesh

The Minimum Dietary Diversity for Women (MDD-W) indicator acts as a tool for assessment, target-setting, and advocacy. MDD-W is a dichotomous indicator of whether or not women 15-49 years...

In this qualitative study, the authors found that health personnel have a great deal of influence on caregivers’ understanding and acceptance of micronutrient powders (MNPs). Home visits...

Keywords: Micronutrient, Anemia
Location: Peru

HarvestPlus is a global leader in the development of more nutritious and micronutrient-rich varieties of staple food crops. This process, known as biofortification, has proven to be an...

SPRING, UNICEF, and the World Food Program (WFP), in collaboration with the Ugandan Ministry of Health (MOH), launched a home fortification program as a strategy to combat micronutrient...

As part of the home fortification series, HF-TAG, in collaboration with UNICEF and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), hosted their sixth webinar, titled “Learnings from...

Keywords: Micronutrient, Anemia

Professionals, organizations, and stakeholders will come together for the Micronutrient Forum Global Conference on October 24-28, 2016, in Cancun, Mexico. The focus for this year’s forum...

Despite rapid economic growth in recent years, South Asia still has among the highest child malnutrition rates in the world with half the child population undernourished. Besides children,...

Keywords: Malnutrition, Micronutrient, Agriculture
Location: Asia

On behalf of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), SPRING organized a micronutritent powders (MNP) consultation to provide contextualized operational guidance on MNP...

Keywords: Anemia, Micronutrient

According to the 2013 National Nutrition Survey, the prevalence of anemia among young children in the Philippines remains high, but there have been significant declines over the past...

Keywords: Anemia, Micronutrient

This study examined predictors of both initial and repeat micronutrient powder (MNP) coverage by comparing two delivery models piloted in rural Nepal: distributing MNPs by female community...

Keywords: Anemia, Micronutrient
Location: Nepal

Pulses, including all kinds of dried beans and peas, are a cheap and nutritious source of protein and vital micronutrients that can benefit people’s health and livelihoods, particularly in...

Keywords: Micronutrient

Monotonous diets fail to provide sufficient micronutrients. Consequently, dietary diversity is crucial for vulnerable groups, in particular women of reproductive age. This report reviews...

Some 2 billion people suffer from hidden hunger caused by infections and diets lacking in essential micronutrients, such as, vitamin A, iron, and zinc. This two page brief explores how...

This report discusses the growing evidence that micronutrient deficiencies may increase due to climate change. Donors and governments are called to fund climate-adaptation efforts for...

Keywords: Micronutrient

Biofortification is among the highest value-for-money investments for economic development and reducing micronutrient deficiencies. In this webinar, Director of HarvestPlus Dr. Howarth...

This map of countries depicts the status of biofortified crops, which have been conventionally bred for high vitamin A, iron, and zinc content to address nutritional needs.