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Short-Term Acceptability of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Foods in Two Provinces of Lao People’s Democratic Republic

Background: In Lao PDR, acute malnutrition remains a public health problem, with around 9% of children under 5 being affected. Outpatient treatment of severe acute malnutrition requires ready-to-use therapeutic foods (RUTFs), but concerns have been raised about the acceptability of globally availabl...

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Autores principales: Aiello, Iacopo, Kounnavong, Sengchanh, Vinathan, Hari, Philavong, Khamseng, Luangphaxay, Chanthaly, Soukhavong, Somphone, Blomberg, Janneke, Wieringa, Frank T.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: MDPI 2023
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10489829/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/37686879
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/nu15173847
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author Aiello, Iacopo
Kounnavong, Sengchanh
Vinathan, Hari
Philavong, Khamseng
Luangphaxay, Chanthaly
Soukhavong, Somphone
Blomberg, Janneke
Wieringa, Frank T.
author_facet Aiello, Iacopo
Kounnavong, Sengchanh
Vinathan, Hari
Philavong, Khamseng
Luangphaxay, Chanthaly
Soukhavong, Somphone
Blomberg, Janneke
Wieringa, Frank T.
author_sort Aiello, Iacopo
collection PubMed
description Background: In Lao PDR, acute malnutrition remains a public health problem, with around 9% of children under 5 being affected. Outpatient treatment of severe acute malnutrition requires ready-to-use therapeutic foods (RUTFs), but concerns have been raised about the acceptability of globally available products. Culturally acceptable RUTFs could be locally developed, but data are lacking on RUTF preferences in Lao PDR. Methods: In a crossover-designed study, four different RUTFs were tested for short-term acceptability and organoleptic qualities (two globally available: peanut-based, which is the current standard, and wheat–milk-based RUTFs; two regionally produced: a mung-bean-based and a fish–rice-based RUTF). Organoleptic properties were evaluated by 83 caretaker–child pair participants through a taste test and a 30 min consumption test. Short-term acceptability was assessed through a 3-day intake test. The study sites were in Phongsaly (North Laos) and Attapeu (South Laos). Focus group discussions were conducted at the beginning and the end of the study. Results: The mung bean RUTF was the favorite among caretakers, with an acceptability percentage of 96.2%, and scored better (p-value < 0.05) for all organoleptic variables than the other three RUTFs. Overall, 3 days after receiving take-home rations, the mean percentage of consumption was above 80% for all the RUTFs, with the mung bean product being the most consumed. Conclusions: The regionally produced mung bean RUTF was the most accepted, whereas the other regionally produced fish-based RUTF was the least accepted, showing the complexity of finding culturally acceptable solutions to fight malnutrition. For Lao PDR, a mung-bean-based RUTF seems the way forward, even if the current standard peanut-based RUTF appeared to be acceptable, albeit not the most preferred.
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spelling pubmed-104898292023-09-09 Short-Term Acceptability of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Foods in Two Provinces of Lao People’s Democratic Republic Aiello, Iacopo Kounnavong, Sengchanh Vinathan, Hari Philavong, Khamseng Luangphaxay, Chanthaly Soukhavong, Somphone Blomberg, Janneke Wieringa, Frank T. Nutrients Article Background: In Lao PDR, acute malnutrition remains a public health problem, with around 9% of children under 5 being affected. Outpatient treatment of severe acute malnutrition requires ready-to-use therapeutic foods (RUTFs), but concerns have been raised about the acceptability of globally available products. Culturally acceptable RUTFs could be locally developed, but data are lacking on RUTF preferences in Lao PDR. Methods: In a crossover-designed study, four different RUTFs were tested for short-term acceptability and organoleptic qualities (two globally available: peanut-based, which is the current standard, and wheat–milk-based RUTFs; two regionally produced: a mung-bean-based and a fish–rice-based RUTF). Organoleptic properties were evaluated by 83 caretaker–child pair participants through a taste test and a 30 min consumption test. Short-term acceptability was assessed through a 3-day intake test. The study sites were in Phongsaly (North Laos) and Attapeu (South Laos). Focus group discussions were conducted at the beginning and the end of the study. Results: The mung bean RUTF was the favorite among caretakers, with an acceptability percentage of 96.2%, and scored better (p-value < 0.05) for all organoleptic variables than the other three RUTFs. Overall, 3 days after receiving take-home rations, the mean percentage of consumption was above 80% for all the RUTFs, with the mung bean product being the most consumed. Conclusions: The regionally produced mung bean RUTF was the most accepted, whereas the other regionally produced fish-based RUTF was the least accepted, showing the complexity of finding culturally acceptable solutions to fight malnutrition. For Lao PDR, a mung-bean-based RUTF seems the way forward, even if the current standard peanut-based RUTF appeared to be acceptable, albeit not the most preferred. MDPI 2023-09-03 /pmc/articles/PMC10489829/ /pubmed/37686879 http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/nu15173847 Text en © 2023 by the authors. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
spellingShingle Article
Aiello, Iacopo
Kounnavong, Sengchanh
Vinathan, Hari
Philavong, Khamseng
Luangphaxay, Chanthaly
Soukhavong, Somphone
Blomberg, Janneke
Wieringa, Frank T.
Short-Term Acceptability of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Foods in Two Provinces of Lao People’s Democratic Republic
title Short-Term Acceptability of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Foods in Two Provinces of Lao People’s Democratic Republic
title_full Short-Term Acceptability of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Foods in Two Provinces of Lao People’s Democratic Republic
title_fullStr Short-Term Acceptability of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Foods in Two Provinces of Lao People’s Democratic Republic
title_full_unstemmed Short-Term Acceptability of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Foods in Two Provinces of Lao People’s Democratic Republic
title_short Short-Term Acceptability of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Foods in Two Provinces of Lao People’s Democratic Republic
title_sort short-term acceptability of ready-to-use therapeutic foods in two provinces of lao people’s democratic republic
topic Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10489829/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/37686879
http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/nu15173847
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