Prevention of Micronutrient Deficiencies

As a health extension worker, It is one of your responsibility to prevent the occurrence of such micronutrient deficiencies in your community through intensive nutritional education for the family and the community. The Essential Nutrition Action (ENA) is a strategy designed to avert the burden of nutritional problems through extensive nutritional education with the participation of all governmental and non-governmental organisations and stakeholders at all levels for the realisation of the 7 essential nutrition actions and messages in the practice of their programs.

The Seven Essential Nutrition Actions (All Are Equally Important):

  • Promotion of optimal nutrition for women.
  • Promotion of adequate intake of iron and folic acid and prevention and control of anemia for women and children.
  • Promotion of adequate intake of iodine by all members of the household.
  • Promotion of optimal breastfeeding during the first six months.
  • Promotion of optimal complementary feeding starting at 6 months with continued breastfeeding to 2 years of age and beyond.
  • Promotion of optimal nutritional care of sick and severely malnourished children.
  • Prevention of vitamin A deficiency in women and children.

Implementing the ENA framework enables building partnerships with all groups supporting maternal and child health and nutrition programs so that messages are harmonised and all groups promote the same messages using the same job aids and IEC materials.

Messages are tailored as "small do-able" actions and behaviour change communications (BCC) techniques are used to promote adoption of these measures.

The approach includes ensuring that key messages and services pertaining to the seven action areas are integrated into all existing health sector programs, in particular those that reach mothers and children at critical contact points (maternal health and prenatal care; delivery and neonatal care; postpartum care for mothers and infants; family planning; immunizations; well child visits (including growth monitoring, promotion, and counseling); sick child visits (including Integrated Management of Newborn & Childhood Illnesses and Integrated Community Case Management); and Outpatient Therapeutic Care during Community-based Management of Acute Malnutrition.

The appropriate messages and services are also integrated to the greatest extent possible into programs outside the health sector, such as agriculture and food security contacts; education (pre-service, primary and secondary schools) and literacy; microcredit and livelihoods enhancement.

Table 2.1.The Three Major Micronutrients, Their Deficiency Diseases and Their Prevention

Nutrient Deficiency disease Prevention strategy
Vitamin A
  • Night blindness
  • Total blindness
  • Weak immunity
  • Unhealthy epithelial cell
Iron
  • Iron deficiency
  • Anemia
  • Breastfeeding
  • Iron supplementation
  • Health education on food diversity and iron rich foods
  • Deworming
Iodine
  • Simple goitre
  • Reduced mental capacity
Last modified: Sunday, 26 February 2017, 5:05 PM