PEDIATRICS Vol. 106 No. 5 Supplement November 2000, pp. 1295-1297
Husein Lalji Dewraj Professor of Pediatrics The Aga Khan University, Karachi Karachi, Pakistan
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Background
The recent WHO/UNICEF review of complementary
feeding in developing countries recognized that iron and zinc
requirements may be difficult to meet from nonfortified complementary
foods.1 This may be compounded by iron and zinc deficiency
in mothers,2 predisposing to deficiency in young and
especially low birth weight infants.3 Diarrheal illnesses
and helminthiasis may increase micronutrient requirements. Figure
1 shows plasma levels for retinol-binding protein and zinc among young infants presenting with diarrhea in
Karachi, Pakistan, indicating that plasma zinc concentration was
significantly lower