This was a community-based study involving 93 infantsaged 7-9 months and randomised to receive daily Sprinkles with or without Vitamin A. Mothers were instructed to mix a single sachet of Sprinkles with a small amount of food which was given to the child. Infants were followed for 5 months.
Results:
At baseline the mean ratio (95%CI) of MRDR for infants in the intervention group was 0.032 (0.025-0.038) compared to 0.031(0.024-0.038) in the control group (p =0.80). At end line the mean Vitamin A concentration of infants in the intervention and control group 304.711 µmol vs. 252.207 µmol respectively but difference was not statistically significant.
Conclusions:
The vitamin A status of the infants was found to be adequate and the study demonstrated the use of stable isotopes as tracers to quantitatively estimate total body stores.