title: Impact of zinc supplementation on mental and psychomotor scores of children aged 12 to 18 months: a randomized, double-blind trial.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the effect of zinc supplementation on mental and psychomotor scores in children aged 12 to 18 months.
  
  
  METHODS
  In this double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial, children aged 6 to 30 months received daily elemental zinc (10 mg for infants and 20 mg for others) or placebo for 4 months. Bayley Scales of Infant Development II were used for development assessment in the 12- to 18-month subgroup at enrollment and the end of the study.
  
  
  RESULTS
  At the end of the study, the adjusted mean mental ( P = .36) and psychomotor ( P = .28) index scores were similar in the intervention and control groups. In a multivariate model, the baseline mental development index score was positively associated with the mother's schooling, the child's height for age, packed cell volumes, hospital birth, and attendance at a day care center, and was negatively associated with the child's age. Breastfeeding, the child's weight for height, and packed cell volumes were positively associated with the baseline psychomotor index score.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Zinc supplementation did not affect the mental or psychomotor development index scores in a setting in which zinc deficiency is common.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi 110-029, India.
authors.forename: Sunita
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Taneja
authors.forename: Nita
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Bhandari
authors.forename: Rajiv
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bahl
authors.forename: Maharaj Kishan
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Bhan
mesh_terms: D019587:Dietary Supplements; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007361:Intelligence Tests; D008297:Male; D011597:Psychomotor Performance; D015032:Zinc / Q000172:deficiency* / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D015032:Zinc