Research paper
Small-quantity, lipid-based nutrient supplements provided to women during pregnancy and 6 mo postpartum and to their infants from 6 mo of age increase the mean attained length of 18-mo-old children in semi-urban Ghana: a randomized controlled trial
Study answer
What this study found
SQ-LNS improved child linear growth by 18 months. Mean length in the SQ-LNS group was 79.7 cm versus 79.1 cm in the iron-folic acid and multiple micronutrient groups, and the combined two-group analysis showed a 0.61 cm benefit for length (P = 0.001), a 0.20 higher LAZ (P = 0.002), a 210 g higher weight (P = 0.010), and a 16 higher WAZ (P = 0.018). Stunting was lower in the SQ-LNS group: 8.9% versus 13.7% and 12.9% in the comparison groups, with a received-enrollment analysis RR of 0.67 (95% CI: 0.46, 0.99) and P = 0.045 for prevalence across groups. Change in WLZ from birth to 18 months did…
- Study & population
- Randomized controlled trial in semi-urban Ghana among pregnant women enrolled at about 16 weeks' gestation and followed with their children through 18 months of age.
- Intervention
- The active regimen provided mothers 20-g daily small-quantity lipid-based nutrient supplement (SQ-LNS) sachets during pregnancy and the first 6 months postpartum.
- Key limitation
- The study was conducted in a single semi-urban region of Ghana, which may limit generalizability.
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Open PDFOriginal abstract
Background: Childhood stunting usually begins in utero and continues after birth; therefore, its reduction must involve actions across different stages of early life. Objective: We evaluated the efficacy of small-quantity, lipid-based nutrient supple…