Effect of feeding maize/legume mixtures on biochemical indices in rats.

Protein-energy malnutrition is one of the major public health problems in developing countries of the world due to prevailing socio-economic problems. This study aimed to observe the effect of formulated complementary blends on biochemical parameters of rats. Extruded complementary blends from maize fortified with cowpea or soybean at a level of 35% and 25% respectively were fed to 4 groups of rats for 28 days. Similarly, 3 other groups of rats were placed on casein, non-protein or rat pellet diet. Biochemical analysis was done on blood samples of the rats. Results from previous studies show the protein content of the formulated diets to range from 15.75% in UMC to 17.24% in MMS. Significantly (p < 0.05) lower WBC, Hb, MCHC, total protein, albumin and globulin values were recorded for the rats fed a non-protein diet (NP). The serum AST level was 75.5, 71.2, 63.2, 51.0, 60.5 and 55.7, respectively, for rats on casein, rat pellet, MMS, UMS, MMC and UMC (list of abbreviations is shown in the appendix) diets. Alkaline phosphatase was significantly (p < 0.05) higher in soybean-based diets while cholesterol was lowest in rats fed the non-protein diet (NP). The value obtained for serum electrolyte concentration in the rats fed NP compared well with rats on other diets but, however, had a significantly (p < 0.05) higher serum sodium value. These results confirm that the experimental diets supported growth, as shown in a previous study, and had no harmful consequence.

Growth pattern of infants fed with a mixture of extruded malted maize and cowpea.

OBJECTIVE: Breast milk alone is insufficient to support normal growth during the second half of infancy, so I investigated supplementary feeding for infants' successful transition to solid food. METHODS: The nutrition status of 30 infants from a low socioeconomic background weaned onto an extruded formulated complementary diet from maize and cowpea (L(1)A(1)) were compared with 30 infants with a similar socioeconomic background (L(2)N, control group) and 30 infants from an above-average socioeconomic background (HN, reference group) without the supplementary diet. Infants within the control and reference groups were weaned onto different foods of the mothers' choice. The formulated diet was analyzed for nutrient composition. RESULTS: The results showed similarity in the estimated annual family income of the L(1)A(1) and L(2)N groups, which ranged from N 25 000 to 74 000 (US $208.30 to 616.70), whereas the estimated family income for the HN group was above N 225 000 (US $1875.00) annually. The formulated blend contained 17.3% protein, 5.0% fat, and 2106 kJ of energy. Mean weight at birth and 4 mo before the feeding intervention in HN infants was statistically (P < 0.05) higher than in L(1)A(1) and L(2)N infants. At the end of the study, L(1)A(1) and HN infants had a mean length within -1 standard deviation of the standard length for age. The mean length of L(2)N infants was within -3 standard deviations of the standard length for age. The effectiveness of the formulated diet was expressed in terms of similarity in anthropometric measurements of L(1)A(1)) and HN infants. CONCLUSIONS: Based on similarities in socioeconomic background and weight at birth and 4 mo in the L(1)A(1) and L(2)N infants, the better nutrition status of the L(1)A(1) is attributed to the formulated complementary diet. The contribution of this mixture to total nutrient intake seemed substantial enough to meet the infants' nutritional requirements. The use of a cheaply available plant protein will go a long way in reducing protein-energy malnutrition among children in developing countries. However, because of the low purchasing power of the low-income family, the costs of this product should be studied.

Nutritional quality of complementary food prepared from unmalted and malted maize fortified with cowpea using extrusion cooking.

The nutritional quality of extruded unmalted or malted maize fortified with cowpea as complementary food was assessed based on its proximate analysis, amino acid composition and results from rat feeding with the blends. Results indicated a slight decrease and increase in protein content due to malting and extrusion respectively. The changes in fat, crude fibre and ash content were not significant. The blends were a good source of energy, ranging from 1831 to 2045 kJ per 100 g. Extrusion significantly increased the amino acid content of the blends, while malting had a varied effect on each of the amino acids. There was no significant difference in the protein efficiency ratio (PER), net protein ratio (NPR) and weight gain of rats fed the blends when compared with the control (casein diet). The present study shows that malting improved the nutritional quality of the blends. Rats fed the casein diet had higher values for total digestibility (TD) and net protein utilisation (NPU). There was no significant difference (P > 0.05) in the internal organ weights of rats fed all blends except the protein-free diet. © 2000 Society of Chemical Industry.