Developing industrial-governmental-academic partnerships to address micronutrient malnutrition.
Micronutrient malnutrition affects approximately 2 billion people and has a significant impact on mortality, morbidity, reproductive health, individual growth and development, and economic productivity. The World Bank has suggested that micronutrient interventions are among the most cost-effective of all health interventions. Therefore, greatly increased collaborative efforts are needed to bring about further reductions in micronutrient malnutrition. At the FAO/WHO International Conference on Nutrition, the importance of various partners in improving nutrition was recognized in the World Declaration on Nutrition and adopted unanimously by 159 governments: "Governments, academic institutions and industry should support the development of fundamental and applied research directed towards improving the scientific and technological knowledge base" for addressing malnutrition, including micronutrient malnutrition. Food-based strategies, including fortification, provide a good example.
Darnton-Hill
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John Snow, Inc., Arlington, Virginia 22209, USA.
D006076:Government; D006801:Humans; D007221:Industry; D007373:Interinstitutional Relations; D018977:Micronutrients; D009748:Nutrition Disorders / Q000517:prevention & control*; D014495:Universities; D014802:Vitamin A Deficiency
D018977:Micronutrients