Clinical research on nutritional formulas for malnourished and stunted children

09/05/2023

RESEARCH TOPIC:

Effect of supplementing Hanie Kid powdered milk on nutritional status, health and ability to absorb products of first grade students.

Preface

The period of young children from 2 to 10 years old is an important period of physical and mental development for the rest of their lives, a period when children are easily at risk of malnutrition. Nutrition at this stage, in addition to energy, lipids, proteins, and special amino acids and micronutrients, is also very important, including vitamin A, iron, iodine, zinc, and vitamins. D, essential unsaturated fatty acids. [1]

According to recommendations of the World Health Organization and UNICEF, micronutrient supplementation is a necessary solution in preventing child malnutrition. Many studies have proven that adding multiple micronutrients to drinking milk has the effect of increasing the speed of body weight and height development, especially in malnourished children [2]. General statistics around the world also reach similar conclusions about the effectiveness of adding micronutrient to drinking milk on children’s height and weight development [2], [3], [4]. Adding micronutrients to drinking milk has been a medium-term, effective and sustainable solution to eliminate the shortage of micronutrients, contributing to reducing malnutrition rates in children in Vietnam in particular and around the world in general. These solutions are implemented through micronutrient supplementation campaigns, or by products fortified with micronutrients and minerals [4], [5].

Hanie Kid is a nutritional product of Nutricare Nutrition Joint Stock Company for children from 2 to 10 years old, with optimal nutritional and energy ingredients and supplemented with important micronutrients such as Omega 3, 6, Vitamins C, D along with DHA and Lysine help restore weight and health for children who have malnutrition, anorexia and need to add more energy to their diet.

To evaluate the effectiveness of Hanie Kid product on nutritional status and health in children, Nutricare cooperated with Thai Binh University of Medicine and Pharmacy to conduct a clinical trial study “Effectiveness of supplementing Hanie Kid powdered milk”. on the nutritional status, health and ability to accept products of first grade students”. The study was approved by the Scientific and Research Ethics Council of Thai Binh University of Medicine and Pharmacy.

Current status of malnutrition in Vietnamese children

Malnutrition, underweight, and stunting among children, especially in rural areas of Vietnam, is also a national health problem that affects the stature, height, intelligence, and working capacity of Vietnamese people. This issue is of special concern to the Health sector and the Government.

a) Micronutrient deficiencies

According to the World Health Organization, one of the most important causes of malnutrition in school children is inadequate or poor quality diet. Ages 2-10 are in strong growing period and need a lot of nutrients. Diet (energy and nutrients) is extremely essential for physical development of school-age children. For this age group, diet (protein of animal origin) and height of parents are positively related to the child’s height gain [6].

According to 2014-2015 statistics from the Institute of Nutrition, the rate of anemia in children 2-10 years old in Vietnam is 27.8%, the rate of pre-clinical vitamin A deficiency in children 2-10 years old is 13%, the rate of zinc deficiency in children 2-10 years old is very high, up to 69.4% [7]. Micronutrient deficiency is often difficult to detect as only when the symptoms manifest strongly into specific diseases such as anemia or dry eyes due to vitamin A deficiency, then it is easy to detect, but if it causes effects on growth and physical development and intelligence over a long period of time, the consequences will be serious and irreversible [8]. Eliminating the Micronutrient deficiency will contribute to reducing the rate of stunting [9].

b, Anorexia

The rate of anorexia in Vietnam tends to increase with economic development. According to research evaluating the condition of pediatric patients who come for annual check-ups at the child nutrition consulting department – National Institute of Nutrition, the rate of diagnosis of anorexia in children coming for examination accounts for 37% [10], while that rate in the US it is 25-45% [11].

Research subjects

The study was conducted on first grade children at 02 Primary and Secondary Schools in Kien Xuong district, Thai Binh province.

– Selection criteria: children in first grade; currently studying at school; without birth defects, mental or motor disabilities or children with chronic diseases; consent from parents/guardians.

– Exclusion criteria: being sick; overweight, obesity (children with WAZ >2 SD, BAZ >1); are taking nutritional supplements, are participating in another study.

Research period

The research was conducted from November 2020 to March 2021.

Research products

Nutritional product for children from 2-10 years old – Hanie Kid 2+, powdered (also known as Hanie Kid Milk Powder) – High energy, rich in protein for anorexic and MALNUTRITIONED children, researched and produced by Nutricare Nutrition Joint Stock Company. The product contains the 5Pro substance, supports gain weight, height increase, digestion improve, resistance enhance and brain development for children.

Specifically, Hanie Kid powdered milk provides high energy and is rich in protein, helping children keep up with growth and gain weight; HMO (2’FL) and Fiber support children’s healthy digestion and prevent constipation; Nano calcium, Vitamin D3, Vitamin K2 help develop bones and increase height; Colostrum, Antioxidant system (A, C, E, Selenium) helps children increase resistance; Zinc, Lysine increase appetite, improve anorexia and DHA develops brain, and Folic Acid helps increase memory and learning ability in children.

Research results

Clinical trial research using a randomized controlled group on first grade children, after 2 months of intervention, showed that:

Hanie Kid Powdered Milk supplemented for first graders has improved nutritional status, health with high acceptability: 

– Weight improvementweight gain in the intervention group was better than the control group: after 1 month (0.46 ± 0.16 kg compared to 0.18 ± 0.10 kg), increased by more than 0.28 kg, statistically significant (p< 0.05); After 2 months (0.86 ± 0.29 kg vs. 0.36 ± 0.17 kg), an increase of more than 0.5 kg, statistically significant (p<0,01).

– Height increasethe height increase in the intervention group was better than the control group (0.88 ± 0.29 cm compared to 0.59 ± 0.17 cm), increased by more than 0.29 cm, with statistical significance. (p<0,05).

– Reduces Malnutrition and The Risk of Malnutritionthe rate of malnutrition in the intervention group decreased significantly compared to the control group: malnutrition underweight decreased by 10.9% with statistical significance (p<0.05); the risk of malnutrition underweight decreased by 14.5% with statistical significance (p<0.05); there is no overweight or obesity.

– Tends to improve respiratory infections, diarrhea, constipation, anorexia, and difficulty sleepingthe incidence rate in the intervention group was lower than the control group: respiratory infections (5.5%; 9.1%); diarrhea (3.6%; 9.1%); constipation (1.8%; 7.3%); anorexia (7.3%; 14.5%); difficulty sleeping (5.5%%; 9.1%) but the data is not enough to test or is not statistically significant (p>0,05).

With this research result, Hanie Kid is a smart choice in providing specialized nutritional supplements according to WHO recommendations to help children gain weight, grow strong and keep up with growth, thereby contributing to improving Vietnamese children’s stature.

The study was published in the Vietnam Medical Journal, published by the Vietnam General Medical Association, issue 2 – June 2021.

 

REFERENCES

  1. WHO (2013). Essential Nutrition Actions: improving maternal, newborn, infant and young child health and nutrition. 
  2. Bộ Y tế (2020). Dự thảo Chiến lược Dinh dưỡng quốc gia giai đoạn 2021-2030. 
  3. Viện Dinh dưỡng Quốc gia (2012). Kết quả chủ yếu của tổng điều tra giới thiệu chiến lược giai đoạn 2011-2020. 
  4. WHO (2002). Infant and young child nutrition: Global strategy on infant and young child feeding. Fifty Fifth World Heal Assem, 53(4), 1-18. 
  5. Mensi A. and Udenigwe C.C. (2021). Emerging and practical food. innovations for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) target 2.2. Trends Food Sci Technol
  6. World Health Organization (2003). Global strategy for infant and young child feeding. Report, 1-30. 
  7. Viện Dinh dưỡng Quốc gia (2015). Điều tra quốc gia về Vi chất dinh dưỡng năm 2014 – 2015. 
  8. World Health Organization, UNICEF, and WFP (2007). Preventing and controlling micronutrient deficiencies in populations affected by an emergency. Bull World Health Organ, 1, 5-6. 
  9. Lai F.Y., Nath M., Hamby S.E., et al. (2018). Adult height and risk of 50 diseases: a combined epidemiological and genetic analysis. BMC Med, 16(1), 187.
  10. Thi T., Phuong T.R.A., Thi N., et al. (2020). Nutritional Status of Children Ages 6 – 59 Months with Anorexia Who Examined at National Institute of Nutrition. Int J Pharm Res, 12(04), 3902-3906. 
  11. Chen A. and Couturier J. (2019). Triggers for Children and Adolescents with Anorexia Nervosa: A Retrospective Chart Review. J Can Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry, 28(3), 134-140. 
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