Improved recipes provide better complementary feeding in young children: findings of community-based trials in Bangladesh.

BACKGROUND: In Bangladesh, only 34% of children receive minimum acceptable diets as complementary foods (CF) for appropriate age while the rest of them remain at the risk of growth faltering, micronutrient deficiency, compromised cognitive development, and increased morbidity and mortality. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of the study was to develop nutritious recipes for complementary feeding and provide necessary guidelines for improving complementary feeding practices for doctors, nutritionist and caregivers. METHODS: This qualitative study including a baseline survey and Trials of Improved Practices of recipes (TIPs) was conducted on families having 6-23 months old children selected by Multi-stage random sampling methods from 2010 to 2012 throughout seven divisions of Bangladesh. Thirty-five food recipes were developed from local food items based on the 'WHO indicators to assess the adequacy of CF practices' for the TIP. Thirty (30) cooked recipes were analyzed for 10 nutrients in an accredited laboratory in Bangladesh. RESULTS: The baseline survey found that energy density of local recipes was low and did not have the required diversity, adequacy, and nutrient density according to IYCF indicators established by WHO. The TIPs found that 28 recipes out of the 35 recipes were most acceptable by both mothers and children. A manual of improved complementary food recipes and a complementary feeding guideline has been developed with calculation of dietary diversity scores, energy and nutrient density. CONCLUSION: This report will provide evidence-based practical knowledge for training and serve as nutrition education tool for nutrition practitioners, policy makers, and academicians.

Antitumor properties of two traditional aromatic rice genotypes (Kalijira and Chinigura).

OBJECTIVE: Methanol extract of bran and unpolished grain of two traditional aromatic rice genotypes viz. Kalijira and Chinigura were assayed for their activity on the growth and initiation of crown-gall tumors on potato disks. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Three Agrobacterium tumefaciens (A. tumefaciens) strain AtSl0105, AtTa0112, and AtAc0114 were used as the tumor forming agent. Collected rice was separated to bran and unpolished grain by different milling processes and made into fine powder before extracting using methanol. Antitumor assay of plant extracts was performed according to standard potato disc bioassay. Disc diffusion assay (Kirby-Bauer Method) was used to screen A. tumefaciens sensitivity test. RESULTS: The results demonstrated a high correlation between the ability of aromatic rice to inhibit the initiation and growth of crown-gall tumors on potato disks. Maximum tumor inhibitions were observed against the strain AtSl0105 by Kalijira bran (73.91%) and Chinigura bran (69.56%). Both unpolished grains showed significant effect (Kalijira 57.43%, Chinigura 55.53%) to inhibit the tumor. CONCLUSION: It can be concluded that aromatic rice (Kalijira and Chinigura) might be a potential source of antitumor agent that can be used for further drug development for tumor treatment.

Maternal and neonatal serum zinc level and its relationship with neural tube defects.

Neural tube defect (NTD) is a multi-factorial disorder in which nutritional, genetic and environmental factors are involved. Among the nutritional factors, low level of serum zinc has been reported from different parts of the world. This hospital-based case-control study was conducted with the objective of finding the relationship between serum zinc level in newborns and their mothers and NTDs in a Bangladeshi population. The study was conducted during August 2006-July 2007 at the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) in Dhaka. In total, 32 mothers and their newborns with NTDs were included as cases and another 32 mothers with their normal babies were included as controls. Concentration of serum zinc was determined by pyro-coated graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrophotometer (GF-AAS). The mean age of the case and control mothers was 25.28 years and 24.34 years respectively. The mean gestational age of the case newborns was 36.59 weeks and that of the control newborns was 37.75 weeks. The mean serum zinc level of the case and control mothers was 610.2 microg/L and 883.0 microg/L respectively (p < 0.01). The mean serum zinc level of the case and control newborns was 723 microg/L and 1,046 microg/L respectively (p < 0.01). In both case and control groups, the serum zinc level of the newborns positively correlated with that of the mothers. The serum zinc levels of the mothers and newborns negatively correlated with NTDs. Mothers with serum zinc level lower than normal were 7.66 [95% confidence interval (CI) 2.5-23.28] times more likely to have NTDs compared to the normal zinc level of mothers. After adjusting for the zinc level of the newborns, parity, and age of the mothers, this risk reduced 1.61 times [confidence interval (CI) 95% 0.24-8.77]. On the other hand, the low serum zinc level of the newborns was 7.22 times more associated with NTDs compared to the newborns with the normal serum zinc level, which was statistically significant (p = 0.001). After adjusting for other factors, such as maternal age and parity, newborns with the low serum zinc level was found to be 9.186 times more likely to be associated with NTDs compared to newborns with normal serum zinc level. Based on the findings, it may be concluded that the low serum zinc levels of newborns may be associated with NTDs. To confirm these findings, a further study with a larger sample-size is recommended. Moreover, a follow-up study with zinc supplementation to pregnant women and its impact on NTDs is also recommended.