Although
iron deficiency is the most common single-nutrient deficiency in infants and children, other deficiencies may develop concurrently, including
zinc deficiency. In previous studies, we used home-fortification with "Sprinkles," single-serve sachets containing microencapsulated
ferrous fumarate added to weaning foods, to successfully treat
anemia. This mode of
micronutrient delivery is amenable to the delivery of other
micronutrients. However, the relative efficacy of multiple
micronutrient supplements for the treatment of
anemia requires evaluation due to possible nutrient interactions. Thus, we evaluated the relative efficacy of Sprinkles formulated with
iron and
zinc in anemic infants, compared with Sprinkles formulated with
iron alone. We studied 304 anemic infants (mean age 10.3 +/- 2.5 mo;
hemoglobin 87.4 +/- 8.4 g/L) in rural Ghana. A combined supplementation group (FeZn) received daily Sprinkles containing 80 mg
iron and 10 mg
zinc; a comparison group (Fe) received Sprinkles (80 mg
iron) without
zinc for 2 mo. The rate of recovery from
anemia was higher in the Fe group compared with the FeZn group (74.8 vs. 62.9%; P = 0.048). The plasma
zinc concentration decreased significantly in both groups (P < 0.05). A significant decline in the height for age Z-score was observed in the FeZn group (P = 0.0011), but there was no change in the Fe group. These results suggest that in a controlled setting, home-fortification using
micronutrient Sprinkles with
iron, or
iron and
zinc, was very successful in treating
anemia; however, this intervention alone was insufficient to improve
zinc status or promote catch-up growth in this stunted and wasted population.