What is the evidence? Well, a new paper in the Journal of Nutrition
reports on a randomized trial of iron-fortified pearl millet in school children
of 12-16 years of age in the Indian state of Maharashtra. The trial, overseen by the highly experienced
Cornell nutritionist, Jere Haas, finds that the consumption of biofortified Pearl
Millet (eaten in the form of Bhakri bread) for 4 months by the 12-16 year old
children resulted in them being 1.6 times as likely to be iron-replete as the
children eating non-biofortified Pearl Millet.
The study has limitations. It was done in a boarding school setting and
so the school meals provided more structure than family meals. Also 28% of the study population was anemic,
which is lower than many such populations.
These factors limit the external validity of the study (i.e. how likely
is it to be generalizable?). The authors
recognize these limitations and outline how future studies should deal with
these issues.
Nevertheless this is a big step
forward for biofortification and the HarvestPlus programme behind it. This is the first
such trial to show such strong effects on iron deficiency. With over 2 billion people deficient in one
or more micronutrients, we should be looking for all potential pathways—diet
diversity, supplementation, fortification, and biofortification—to perform at
high levels to eliminate this hidden form of malnutrition.
Biofortication seems to be
charting one clear pathway to improved nutrient status, but they are all
important. I very much hope we get many more
of these biofortification efficacy (and effectiveness) studies and that as many
as possible show positive impacts.
If
the pearl is the oyster’s autobiography, as the saying goes, then this study may be the midpoint of
biofortification’s biography.
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