Addition of Zinc to Soaking Water during Parboiling Increases the Zinc Content of Bangladeshi Rice.

Objectives: In Bangladesh, zinc deficiency affects 45% of preschool children and 57% of women. As zinc deficiency is linked to child growth stunting, diarrheal disease, pneumonia, and increased risk of child mortality, large-scale programs for its prevention are required. Most rice produced in Bangladesh is parboiled and this presents a technical opportunity to increase rice zinc content by adding zinc during soaking. The objective of this study was to evaluate the increase in zinc content achievable by this strategy in milled Bangladeshi rice using local parboiling conditions, and its potential effect on adequacy of zinc intakes. Methods: A major local rice variety (BR29) and zinc sulfate were used. Paddy was steamed for 2 minutes, soaked in distilled, deionized water for 9 hours with addition of 0, 100, 150, 200, or 300 mg zinc/kg paddy. Drained paddy was steamed in a pressurized autoclave before drying and milling. Zinc content was determined by X-Ray Fluorescence. Results: Rice zinc content was 12.3, 16.0, 16.7, 21.6, and 23.6 mg/kg dry weight, respectively, where the highest level represents a 92% increase over the control. Using existing dietary intake data from two districts, we estimated that if parboil-fortified rice with 300 mg/kg zinc were consumed by 70% of the population, the prevalence of inadequate intakes would decrease from 34 to 16% among preschool children and 98 to 43% among women. Conclusions: This strategy has potential to substantially decrease the prevalence of dietary zinc deficiency in Bangladesh, although the technical feasibility of implementing in large-scale mills requires further study.

Modification of Local Diets Could Fill Gaps in B-Vitamin Intakes but Calcium, Iron, and Zinc Intake Gaps Require External Solutions for Breastfed Children in Rural Kenya.

Objectives: The objective of this study was to identify gaps in the adequacy of nutrient intakes, and food-based recommendations to fill those gaps, from complementary diets of 6-23 mo old children in two agro-ecological zones of rural Kenya. Methods: In a high rainfall area of Western Kenya (Vihiga) and a semi-arid area of Eastern Kenya (Kitui), food and nutrient intakes from complementary diets of 6-8, 9-11, and 12-23 mo old breastfed children were quantified using 24-hour dietary recalls. Optifood, an automated linear programming tool, was used to identify recommended nutrient intakes (RNIs) that could not be achieved using locally available foods (problem nutrients) and optimal food-based recommendations that would improve dietary adequacy for 11 nutrients, if adopted. Model constraints ensured they conformed to local food patterns. Results: Problem nutrients were iron and zinc (all age/location subgroups), plus calcium in Vihiga and vitamin B12 in 12-23 mo olds in Kitui. Dietary vitamins A and C were adequate in most subgroups, while most B-vitamins were moderately inadequate in most subgroups. Specific recommendations varied somewhat by subgroup, but included increased weekly servings of green leafy vegetables, legumes, existing fortified cereals, dairy products, plus millet flour and meat, fish or egg in Kitui, and sardines in Vihiga. Conclusions: In conclusion, food-based recommendations alone can ensure >65% of RNIs for all nutrients, except for iron and zinc (all subgroups), and folate or niacin (12-23 mos), which require external solutions such as new targeted fortified foods. These results provide an evidence base for designing appropriate interventions for improved complementary diets.