USAID Advancing Nutrition develops, curates, packages, and shares multi-sectoral nutrition knowledge to help you stay on top of developments and evidence in global nutrition programming.
Characteristics and Outcomes of Neonatal SARS-CoV-2 Infection in the UK: A Prospective National Cohort Study Using Active Surveillance
Publication Date:
Nutrition and Health SystemsCOVID-19
This study, conducted among babies with confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection in the first 28 days of life who received inpatient care, found that infection following birth to a mother with perinatal SARS-CoV-2 infection was unlikely, and vertical transmission rare. This supports current international guidance to avoid separation of mother and baby.
Combined IYCF with Small-Quantity Lipid-based Nutrient Supplementation Is Associated with a Reduction in Anemia
Publication Date:
Nutrition and Health SystemsAnemiaGrowth Monitoring and Promotion
Researchers analyzed data from 2,995 children after an intervention area received enhanced infant and young child feeding counseling and daily small-quantity lipid-based nutrient supplementation for infants 6–12 months and a control area received the standard counseling package without the nutrient supplementation.
Questionnaire Modules: Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES from FAO)
Publication Date:
Monitoring, Evaluation, and LearningFood Security
The FIES questionnaire comprises eight questions that measure moderate and severe household food insecurity. The module asks respondents to self-report their access to food of sufficient quantity and quality for the last 12 months. Questions focus on a lack of money and resources to obtain food.
Monitoring, Evaluation, and LearningGrowth Monitoring and PromotionInfant and Young Child Nutrition (IYCN)Nutrition Assessment, Counseling, and Support (NACS)
Several topic-specific questionnaire modules can be added to the standard DHS questionnaire modules. These include those focusing on accident and injury, adult and maternal mortality, disability, domestic violence, female genital cutting, fistula, the food insecurity experience scale, newborn care, non-communicable diseases, out-of-pocket health expenditures, and maternal health care.
Catch-up Growth is a Better Indicator of Undernutrition than Thresholds for Stunting
Publication Date:
Monitoring, Evaluation, and LearningGrowth Monitoring and PromotionInfant and Young Child Nutrition (IYCN)Nutrition Assessment, Counseling, and Support (NACS)
This cross-sectional study among rural and urban populations with different socio-economic status found that the catch-up growth spurt following a nutrition intervention is a more sensitive indicator of past undernourishment than static thresholds for stunting.
Variability in Haemoglobin Concentration by Measurement Tool and Blood Source: An Analysis from Seven Countries
Publication Date:
Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning
Analyses found large variability in haemoglobin concentration measured on capillary or venous blood and using HemoCue Hb 201+ or Hb 301 or automated haematology analyser. It is unclear whether the variation is due to differences in equipment, differences in capillary and venous blood, or factors affecting blood collection techniques. Please note that this resource is behind a paywall.
Within-Person Variation in Nutrient Intakes across Populations and Settings: Implications for the Use of External Estimates in Modeling Usual Nutrient Intake Distributions
Publication Date:
Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning
Using external estimates of within- and between-person variation in nutrient intakes in lieu of collecting multiple days of dietary intake data causes a high degree of uncertainty in resulting models of usual nutrient intake distributions. Single-day dietary studies should complete sensitivity analyses to determine the robustness of prevalence estimates to changes in the variance ratio.
Micronutrient Fortification of Commercially Available Biscuits Is Predicted to Have Minimal Impact on Prevalence of Inadequate Micronutrient Intakes: Modeling of National Dietary Data from Cameroon
Publication Date:
Monitoring, Evaluation, and LearningInfant and Young Child Nutrition (IYCN)
Biscuit fortification is uncommon and unlikely to reduce dietary inadequacy of studied micronutrients in the absence of large-scale food fortification programs. As voluntary fortification becomes increasingly common, modeling studies could guide efforts to ensure that fortified products align with public health goals.
Double Burden of Malnutrition: A Systematic Review of Operational Definitions
Publication Date:
Monitoring, Evaluation, and LearningAnemia
While most double burden of malnutrition definitions include overweight and obesity variables, they diverge in their use of thinness, wasting, underweight, stunting, anemia, and micronutrient deficiency measurements.
Revisiting the Evidence on Kwashiorkor Malnutrition
Publication Date:
Knowledge ManagementWastingInfant and Young Child Nutrition (IYCN)
Researchers and practitioners review recent evidence related to kwashiorkor, including treatment, diet, and associated biochemical mechanisms, overt signs, and the metabolic and biochemical characterization of kwashiorkor. This is a series of three webinars.
There is a lack of consensus about whether income alone leads to greater food and nutrition security. Some argue that higher incomes lead nations to focus on other priorities at the expense of food production and nutrition, while others believe that higher incomes lead to greater access to inputs and land, which in turn leads to higher-quality food production.
This initiative promotes giving babies breastmilk only from their birth through the first six months of life. Materials include presentations, calls to action, questions and answers, and fact sheets. All materials are available in English and French.
Future Food Systems: For People, Our Planet, and Prosperity
Publication Date:
Food SystemsCOVID-19Food Security
Food systems require fundamental transformation to promote sustainable healthy diets for all, and must focus on food availability, accessibility, affordability, and desirability. While much focus is on low- and middle-income countries (LMIC), high-income countries also have a vital role, particularly when their decisions affect LMICs.
A Research Vision for Food Systems in the 2020s: Defying the Status Quo
Publication Date:
Food SystemsCOVID-19Food Security
Food systems research and science to ensure that food is accessible, sustainable, safe, healthy, and equitable is critical and must be quickly translated into policy and action. COVID-19 further highlights the importance of governance, efficiency, resilience, functionality of food systems, and the strong interconnections between food and health.
Food Systems Everywhere: Improving Relevance in Practice
Publication Date:
Food Security
Food systems frameworks require greater consistency. Beyond food production, agri-food supply chains, and the market and institutional food environment, a greater understanding of the social, economic, biological, and psychological determinants of food choices is important.
The Trade-Offs of Healthy Food from Sustainable Agriculture in the Global South
Publication Date:
Food SystemsFood Security
The framework addresses policy trade-offs between food security, prosperity, environmentally significant policy and market reforms, and tailored public interventions. Policymakers must make decisions about which targets should be met first and which have to be postponed. This article is behind a paywall.
Early Childhood DevelopmentInfant and Young Child Nutrition (IYCN)
The toolkit provides materials for those seeking to advocate for increased attention to and investment in early childhood development include country profiles, case studies, examples of advocacy best practices, key messages, quotes that capture the critical elements of nurturing care, a detailed explanation of nurturing care, and answers to frequently asked questions.
Monitoring Children's Development in Primary Care Services
Publication Date:
Early Childhood DevelopmentGrowth Monitoring and Promotion
This report presents guidance on multi-domain developmental assessments, observation and screening for cerebral palsy, vision and hearing difficulties, and the integration of family and community factors in developmental counseling and monitoring.
Reorienting Nurturing Care for Early Childhood Development during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Kenya: A Review
Publication Date:
Early Childhood DevelopmentCOVID-19Economic Growth
To mitigate the effects of COVID-19 on children and their caregivers, authors advocate for full financing and operationalization of service provision that transcends COVID-19 barriers and addresses health, social and child protection, economic protection, and child development.
Differential Influences of Early Growth and Social Factors on Young Children’s Cognitive Performance in Four Low-and-Middle-Income Birth Cohorts (Brazil, Guatemala, Philippines, and South Africa)
Publication Date:
Early Childhood DevelopmentGrowth Monitoring and PromotionInfant and Young Child Nutrition (IYCN)
Research demonstrates that parental education and household resources have a greater impact on childhood cognition than birth weight and early linear growth. Improving children’s cognitive functioning requires multi-sectoral interventions to strengthen parental education and economic wellbeing.