Short-term supplementation with zinc and vitamin A has no significant effect on the growth of undernourished Bangladeshi children.

Randomized, placebo-controlled trial in mildly to moderately malnourished children aged 12 to 35 months living in urban slums in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Active-arm sample sizes were Z N=165, vitamin A N=157, and zinc plus vitamin A N=171.

Children were assigned to zinc syrup, vitamin A, zinc plus vitamin A, or placebo. The zinc regimen was 5 mL syrup providing 20 mg elemental zinc daily for 14 days; vitamin A was a single 60,000-RE (200,000-IU; 60-mg) capsule on day 14; the combination arm received both active treatments on the same schedule.

Short-term zinc, vitamin A, or zinc plus vitamin A did not improve growth. Over 6 months, weight and length gains were similar across active arms, with no significant between-group differences in growth velocity. Reported 6-month weight gain was 747 ± 485 g in the zinc group, 801 ± 492 g in the zinc plus vitamin A group, and 835 ± 435 g in the vitamin A group; corresponding length gain was 4.29 ± 1.54 cm, 4.12 ± 1.29 cm, and 4.33 ± 1.41 cm. Changes in weight-for-age, weight-for-length, and length-for-age z scores were small and near zero.

Short-term supplementation and a 6-month follow-up limit inference about longer-term growth effects. The trial was conducted in undernourished children from urban slums in Dhaka, so generalizability is limited. No meaningful benefit was observed despite moderate arm sizes, and the source packet does not provide full placebo-arm outcome data here.