The Journal of nutrition
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The Journal of nutrition · Oct 2006
Randomized Controlled TrialPsychosocial stimulation improves the development of undernourished children in rural Bangladesh.
Undernutrition in early childhood is associated with poor mental development and affects 45% of children in Bangladesh. Although limited evidence shows that psychosocial stimulation can reduce the deficits, no such interventions have been reported from Bangladesh. The Bangladesh Integrated Nutrition Program (BINP) has provided nutrition supplementation to undernourished children through community nutrition centers (CNCs). ⋯ Intervened children scored lower only in motor development (-4.4 +/- 2.3, P = 0.049). Neither group of undernourished children improved in nutritional status, indicating that treatment had no effect. In conclusion, adding child development activities to the BINP improved children's development and behavior and their mothers' knowledge; however, the lack of improvement in growth needs to be examined further.