| Vitamin A
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Background
Vitamin A is essential to health and is generally
acquired by humans in a healthy diet. Vitamin A deficiency (VAD) is a major contributor to
childhood mortality and is also likely to be a contributing factor to maternal deaths.
Every year, some 12 million children in developing countries die before they reach their
fifth birthday, many during the first year of life. Seven out of ten of these deaths are
due to acute respiratory disease infections (mostly pneumonia), diarrhoea, measles,
malaria or malnutrition - or more commonly some combination of these conditions. These
same children are often most at risk of vitamin A deficiency (VAD) a known contributing
factor to these causes of death and disease.
Vitamin A deficiency can be corrected by a number of
strategies including:
- improving diet by advice as to better use of available
vegetables
- food fortification
- agricultural reform
- supplementation.
The provision of high does vitamin A supplementation
every 4-6 months not only protects against blindness but also has a significant impact on
the health of children 6-59 months of age, reducing the risk of dying from all causes by
23%. Vitamin A supplementation has been shown to have a significant impact on child
mortality and morbidity.
A number of WHO units are active in promoting these
approaches (such as IMCI) and Food and Nutrition. As a relatively new
initiative, the Department of Vaccines and Biologicals promotes the administration of
vitamin A supplementation during immunization in those countries with deficiency. This
approach uses three strategies:
- with routine immunization services
- during national immunization days - this approach
has been particularly effective when giving vitamin A with oral polio vaccine
- as part of case treatment
More information on vitamin A deficiency is available on
the following web pages. They can also be accessed with a CDRom available in English and
French on request from the V&B Document Centre.
Key resource documents related to
VAD and immunization:
Integration of vitamin A supplementation with
immunization: policy and programme implications. Report of a meeting,
12-13 January 1998. (version
française)
Distribution of vitamin A during national immunization
days. A "generic" guide to the Field
guide for supplementary activities aimed at achieving polio eradication. (version française)
Using national immunization days to deliver vitamin A. EPI Update 33,
November 1998. (version
française)
CDRom Resource
A CDRom is available entitled "Integrating vitamin A
with immunization. An information and training package" and can be requested from
V&B/WHO Geneva Document Centre in English or French. This material is also available
in the subsequent web pages by clicking
here.
Other sites:
Other web sites concerned with vitamin A deficiency and
supplementation
BASICS
Helen Keller Worldwide
IVACG
PATH
CDC
Micronutrient Initiative
Sight and Life
UNICEF
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