Improvement the nutritional status of pre-school children following intervention with a supplement containing iron, zinc, copper, vitamin A, vitamin C and prebiotic

This study investigated the effects of a vitamin and mineral fortified powder product supplemented with inulin, on the iron and vitamin A status of 110 pre-schools childrens in Vico-osa, MG, Brazil. The 2 to 5-year-old children were submitted to anthropometric (weight and height), biochemical (erythrocytes, hemoglobin, mean corpuscular volume-MCV, mean corpuscular hemoglobin-MCH, serum iron, ferritin and serum retinol) and dietary (direct food weighing, 24 h recall, and food intake record) evaluations, at the beginning and at the end of a 45-day intervention. The supplement (30 g) was provided daily as part of the afternoon snack, diluted in 100 mL of water, 5 times/week and it supplied 30% of the recommended daily doses of iron, zinc, copper and vitamins A and C. Dietary and biochemical data was compared by the Wilcoxon test, and anthropometric data by the paired t-test. Values of z-scores for weight and height, erythrocytes, hemoglobin, MCV, MCH and ferritin were significantly higher after intervention; no change was observed in serum retinol. The prebiotic-containing supplement significantly increased the intake of energy, macro and micronutrients, and was effective in improving the iron and anthropometric status.