Unfavorable Infant Feeding Practices in East Lombok Have Not Yet Changed Much in the Last Decade (Praktik Pemberian Makan Bayi Yang Tidak Tepat Belum Banyak Mengalami Perubahan Dalam Satu Dekade Terakhir Di Lombok Timur)

Background: One of the districts that haven't reached the national nutrition recovery target was East Lombok, the prevalence of underweight among under two children was 25.5 percent. One of the underlying causes of under-nutrition is inappropriate feeding practices that occur during the first year of life. Several factors lies behind these practices, such as experiences, family demands, socio-economic circumstances, and cultural beliefs. Objective: To explore the infant feeding (breastfeeding and complementary feeding) practices among 9-11 month infants in East Lombok. Methods: This cross-sectional study use qualitative method. Four Group Interview with the mothers of 9-11 month infants were conducted. Confirmation was done from Group Interview with the cadres, interview with local health officers and observation from study site. Analysis was done by making contrast, comparison or themes emerged from the data. Results: This study revealed that the infant feeding practices still haven't optimal as indicated by low exclusive breastfeeding practices for 6th month, pre-lacteal feeding and the consumption of pre-masticated foods (“papah”) still commonly happen in East Lombok. Furthermore, the early introduction of complementary food and less frequency of meals and snacks a day also still practiced. The hygiene practices also still have to be considered where the consumption of unboiled water (“air nyet”) among infants still familiar in this area. Comparing to several studies have been conducted, these unfavorable infant feeding practices in East Lombok have not yet changed much in the last decade. Conclusion: Most of the infant feeding practices in East Lombok were haven't optimal. Recommendation: Local-specific nutrition education was needed with the involvement of religious leader in the community in delivering the messages. Other community channel (like arisan or pertemuan kampung) was also recommended to deliver the messages

Formulate and evaluate population-specific complementary feeding recommendations using linear programming

International audienc

The SMILING project: A North–South–South collaborative action to prevent micronutrient deficiencies in women and young children in Southeast Asia

BACKGROUND: The "Sustainable Micronutrient Interventions to Control Deficiencies and Improve Nutritional Status and General Health in Asia" project (SMILING), funded by the European Commission, is a transnational collaboration of research institutions and implementation agencies in five Southeast Asian countries--Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos PDR, Thailand, and Vietnam--with European partners, to support the application of state-of-the art knowledge to alleviate micronutrient malnutrition in Southeast Asia. OBJECTIVE: The major expected outcomes are to improve micronutrient status on a large scale, to identify priority interventions in each Southeast Asian country, and to develop a road map for decision makers and donors for inclusion of these priority interventions into the national policy. METHODS: SMILING has been built around a strong project consortium that works on a constant and proactive exchange of data and analyses between partners and allows for the differences in contexts and development stages of the countries, as well as a strong North-South-South collaboration and colearning. RESULTS: The selection of Southeast Asian countries considered the range of social and economic development, the extent of micronutrient malnutrition, and capacity and past success in nutrition improvement efforts. SMILING is applying innovative tools that support nutrition policy-making and programming. The mathematical modeling technique combined with linear programming will provide insight into which food-based strategies have the potential to provide essential (micro) nutrients for women and young children. Multicriteria mapping will offer a flexible decision-aiding tool taking into account the variability and uncertainty of opinions from key stakeholders. The lessons learned throughout the project will be widely disseminated

Randomized Trial of Probiotics and Calcium on Diarrhea and Respiratory Tract Infections in Indonesian Children

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of calcium and probiotics on the incidence and duration of acute diarrhea and acute respiratory tract infections (ARTIs) in low-socioeconomic communities of Jakarta, Indonesia. METHODS: We conducted a 6-month, double-blind, placebo-controlled study in 494 healthy children aged 1 to 6 years who received low-lactose milk with low calcium content (LC; ~50 mg/day; n = 124), regular calcium content (RC; ~440 mg/day; n = 126), RC with 5.108 colony-forming units per day of Lactobacillus casei CRL431 (casei; n = 120), or RC with 5.108 colony-forming units per day of Lactobacillus reuteri DSM17938 (reuteri; n = 124). Number and duration of diarrhea and ARTIs episodes were primary and secondary outcomes, respectively. RESULTS: Incidence of World Health Organization–defined diarrhea (=3 loose/liquid stools in 24 hours) was not significantly different between RC and LC (relative risk [RR]: 0.99 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.62–1.58]), between casei and RC (RR: 1.21 [95% CI: 0.76–1.92]), or between reuteri and RC (RR: 0.76 [95% CI: 0.46–1.25]) groups. Incidence of all reported diarrhea (=2 loose/liquid stools in 24 hours) was significantly lower in the reuteri versus RC group (RR: 0.68 [95% CI: 0.46–0.99]). Irrespective of the definition used, reuteri significantly reduced diarrhea incidence in children with lower nutritional status (below-median height-and-weight-for-age z score). None of the interventions affected ARTIs. CONCLUSIONS: RC milk, alone or with L casei, did not reduce diarrhea or ARTIs in Indonesian children. L reuteri may prevent diarrhea, especially in children with lower nutritional statu