title: Providing lipid-based nutrient supplements does not affect developmental milestones among Malawian children.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess whether using lipid-based nutrient supplements (LNS) to complement the diets of infants and young children affected when they achieved selected developmental milestones.
  
  
  METHODS
  In rural Malawi, 840 6-month-old healthy infants were enrolled to a randomised trial. Control participants received no supplements, others were provided with milk-containing LNS, soy-containing LNS or corn-soy blend (CSB) for 12 months. Outcomes were the age at which they achieved key milestone: motor (walking with assistance, standing and walking alone, running), social (drinking from a cup and eating by themselves) and language (saying single comprehensible words and waving goodbye).
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean age at which the subjects walked with assistance was 42.5, 42.3, 42.7 and 43.2 weeks in the control, milk-LNS, soy-LNS and CSB groups, respectively (p = 0.748). There were also no significant differences in the mean age at standing alone (45.0, 44.9, 45.1 and 46.3 weeks), walking alone (54.6, 55.1, 55.3, 56.5 weeks), running (64.6, 63.7, 64.8, 65.9 weeks) or any other social or language milestones (each p > 0.10).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The findings do not support a hypothesis that providing tested formulations and doses of micronutrient-fortified LNS or CSB would have an impact on when young children in rural Malawi achieved selected developmental milestones.
authors.affiliation: College of Medicine, University of Malawi, Blantyre, Malawi; School of Medicine, University of Tampere, Tampere, Finland.
authors.forename: Charles
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Mangani
authors.forename: Yin Bun
authors.initials: YB
authors.lastname: Cheung
authors.forename: Kenneth
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Maleta
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Phuka
authors.forename: Chrissie
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Thakwalakwa
authors.forename: Kathryn
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Dewey
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Manary
authors.forename: Taneli
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Puumalainen
authors.forename: Per
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Ashorn
mesh_terms: D002657:Child Development; D019587:Dietary Supplements; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008055:Lipids / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D008295:Malawi; D008297:Male; D009048:Motor Skills
chemical_list: D008055:Lipids
keywords: Child development; Complementary feeding; Developmental milestones; Infants and young children; Lipid-based nutrient supplements