A recent study showed very high prevalence of anaemia ranging from 70 to 90 percent among the young children aged 6-24 months due to deficiency of iron.

The study jointly conducted by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and the Cornell University's Division of Nutritional Sciences took place mainly in Haiti, but its implications are global.

According to an IFPRI press release received here yesterday, the study is the first of its kind to show that sprinkles, a nutritional supplement, which can be added to children's food, reduce anaemia by more than half.

"Nutrition is effective in reducing anaemia when included in an ongoing fortified food and programme implemented under challenging, real-life conditions in developing countries," it said.

Sprinkles have been tried in other developing countries, such as Ghana and Indonesia and were found to be a very effective way to reduce micro-nutrient efficiencies. Sprinkles were also tested in Bangladesh, where floods engulf one third of its territory annually, hampering economic development.

According to the press release, pregnant women are next to the under-2 children in their vulnerability to develop anaemia. Since 2003, a number of research studies have been completed in Bangladesh and some are ongoing to answer questions about how sprinkles can be used in programme settings.

The first clinical trial completed in Bangladesh examined daily versus weekly administration of sprinkles to young children.

The second study, however, examined whether giving 60 sprinkles sachets flexibly over a period of 3 or 4 months would improve anaemia status as well as giving a 60 sachets daily over 2 months in young children.

Both the studies have implications for how sprinkles should be distributed in programme settings. With the impact of sprinkles on decreasing anemia prevalence in children, the needs of a second target group, pregnant women may also be addressed using sprinkles.

In the developing world, the studies showed, iron/folic acid tablets are the main strategy geared to pregnant women to prevent anemia. As recommended by WHO, however, compliance is low due to common gastro-intestinal side effects.

According to the key findings of both the studies, sprinkles given either once in a day or a week significantly improved anaemia and iron status indicators.

The percentage of children, who were successfully treated for anaemia and maintained a non-anaemic status over time, was significantly greater in both the flexible groups as compared to the daily administration group, the press release said.

The studies also found that fortified food aid alone was insufficient to prevent anaemia in infants and young children, even if mothers were advised to complement the donated commodities with locally available iron-rich foods.

This could be due to the fact that foods, such as meat, are too expensive for families to buy on a daily basis and that donated foods are often shared among all family members rather than consumed only by the child.

"Sprinkles are one of the most promising innovations in nutrition today," said Purnima Menon, lead author of the studies and research associate in the Division of Nutritional Sciences at Cornell University. They offer an inexpensive option that mothers seem to love and children can consume easily, she also said.

According to the experts, who conducted both the studies, sprinkles hold the potential to dramatically reduce anaemia, which undermines the livelihoods of children across the developing world.