The risk of micronutrient deficiency and the importance of school milk

Micronutrients - so small but so important

Speaking at the "Micronutrient Day 2019", Professor Nguyen Viet Tien, Deputy Minister of Health, emphasized: Micronutrient deficiency is seriously affecting the development of children from preschool to primary school age. Organizing the annual micronutrient festival aims to spread the spirit and understanding to the whole society about the importance of micronutrients, although they are very small but extremely important nutrients.

Micronutrients are very small but extremely important nutrients for the growth and development of children, especially school-age children.

The report of the Institute of Nutrition said that although in recent years, Vietnam has achieved significant achievements in improving the nutritional status of the people, such as the rate of malnutrition in children has decreased quite rapidly and sustainably, it is still facing challenges such as the rate of stunting (height for age) in children under 5 years old each year is still high (24.3%) and there is a difference between regions, especially mountainous, disadvantaged and rural areas with cities and plains. This rate in the Northern mountainous region is 30.3% and the Central Highlands is 34.2%. "Stunting and micronutrient deficiencies are the main causes of low height in Vietnamese youth", the report affirmed.

In addition, micronutrient deficiencies also adversely affect health, physical development, stature, and intelligence, hindering the growth and comprehensive development of children and reproductive capacity, as well as the labor productivity of adults. Meanwhile, the implementation of nutritional care for infants and young children, school nutrition, and nutrition for workers has only achieved initial results.

According to Associate Professor, Doctor Le Bach Mai, former Deputy Director of the National Institute of Nutrition, Vietnamese people often lack vitamin A, vitamin D, zinc, iron, multi-micronutrient deficiencies, and low calcium intake. The results of the 2014-2015 survey by the National Institute of Nutrition showed that the rate of preclinical vitamin A deficiency in children under 5 years old was 13%; 80.3% of pregnant women; 63.6% of women of childbearing age; 69.4% of children under 5 years old were zinc deficient and up to 45% of children 6-12 months old were anemic.

Symptoms of micronutrient deficiencies can manifest as diseases such as iron deficiency anemia and vitamin A deficiency xerophthalmia. If the deficiency lasts for a long time, physical and mental growth and development will be affected, sometimes irreversibly. Typically, long-term calcium deficiency in the diet (less than 600mg a day) can cause mineral metabolism disorders in bones, reduce bone weight, cause osteoporosis, rickets, muscle spasms, and be associated with high blood pressure, colon cancer, and colorectal cancer. Micronutrient deficiencies can lead to death, reduced quality of life, and productivity.

Preschool age is also the golden age for micronutrient supplementation, so micronutrient supplements in school meals are really necessary for children.

Professor, Dr. Le Danh Tuyen, Director of the National Institute of Nutrition, provided information: According to the leading medical journal Lancet, the map of micronutrient deficiency covers all developing countries of the continents (including Vietnam), causing serious impacts on the physical and intellectual development of children. The diet of Vietnamese people in general, especially children, does not provide enough micronutrients for the body's needs. In Southeast Asia, micronutrient deficiency for the body's needs occurs in both urban and rural areas (ASEAN and Vietnam nutrition monitoring data). The main reason is that the diet does not provide enough of most of the micronutrients necessary for the body's needs.

There is a great need for certified safe multivitamin supplements.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Muoi, Principal of Mat Troi Kindergarten, Thanh Hoa City, where the Institute of Nutrition chose to organize the launching ceremony of Micronutrient Day 2019, shared her concerns when the characteristics of kindergartens are that child nutrition is the most important task, preschool age is also the golden age for micronutrient supplementation. Therefore, choosing which foods to supplement many micronutrients for children will be prioritized by the school. However, what Ms. Muoi and other parents want is that micronutrient supplements brought to schools need to be tested by the authorities and confirmed to be truly safe and necessary for children. School milk products being applied in provinces and cities such as Hanoi, Da Nang, Ben Tre, Vung Tau ... are one of such products.

In addition to daily meals, foods for children such as milk need to supplement many important micronutrients to help improve children's intelligence and physical health.

Professor Le Danh Tuyen recommends: People should pay attention to choosing foods fortified with micronutrients in their daily meals such as: iodine-fortified salt, iron-fortified wheat flour, zinc-fortified wheat flour or foods with ingredients fortified with these micronutrients, cooking oil fortified with vitamin A, etc.

Notably, Professor Le Danh Tuyen affirmed: For children who drink milk under the School Milk Program, using milk fortified with multi-micronutrients will be more beneficial for growth and development.

Sharing the same view on the need to increase the amount of milk supplemented with multi-micronutrients for children, Associate Professor, Doctor Le Bach Mai expressed concern when citing information from the Vietnam Dairy Association's 2018 report, the average milk consumption of Vietnamese people is only 27-28 liters of milk per person per year, still quite modest compared to Thailand, Singapore, and Japan. Milk producers should pay attention to adding more important micronutrients to milk products to contribute to improving the health of Vietnamese people. According to a survey by the Institute of Nutrition, the diet of most Vietnamese people does not meet the needs of vitamins and minerals, leading to micronutrient deficiencies.

Recognizing the importance of milk for the development of children, especially those of school age, the Government issued Decision 1340/QD-TTg on July 8, 2016 approving the School Milk Program to improve nutritional status and contribute to improving the stature of preschool and primary school children by 2020. By June 2019, 11 provinces and cities across the country had successfully implemented this program of profound humanitarian significance.

Regarding the use of multi-micronutrients in school milk products, Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Viet Tien affirmed: The types and content of micronutrients added to school milk follow the guidelines of the World Health Organization and are suitable for the nutritional needs of the age group in the table of recommended nutritional needs for Vietnamese people.

“The implementation of this program is completely transparent and very methodical, strictly following nutritional standards and criteria when put into use, ensuring to provide children with the necessary nutrition and micronutrients. Therefore, we can be completely assured about the use of micronutrients in school milk products,” Deputy Minister Tien emphasized and expressed his hope that organizations and the whole society would join hands and pay attention to supplementing micronutrients for children, avoiding unnecessary diseases caused by micronutrient deficiencies.