“it takes only two doses of vitamin a every year from age 6 months to 5 years, to save a child’s life,” says mannar. “vitamin a is a simple, inexpensive way to boost children’s immune systems so their bodies can fight off deadly infections and get the best start in life.”
mannar has led a global effort to end vitamin a deficiency. mi has provided more than 5 billion vitamin a capsules to children, pregnant women, and breast-feeding mothers in 75 countries. mi’s vitamin pills are estimated to have save the lives of more than 2 million children in the past 10 years.
in 2008, a panel of top economists from around the world ranked micronutrients as the best investment in solving some of the world’s biggest problems. health economists calculated that every dollar spent on vitamin a and zinc supplementation programs creates benefits worth more than $17. zinc supplements save the lives of young children at risk of dying of severe diarrhea.
iodine adds iq
mannar, who was born in india, first saw the potential of food fortification while working in his family’s salt manufacturing business. he became interested in universal salt iodization, the process of adding iodine to salt to solve the global problem of iodine deficiency. iodine is a trace mineral that protects a child’s growing brain. a lack of iodine in the diet is the leading preventable cause of brain damage. it also causes goiter, a large swelling of the thyroid gland in the neck.
mannar remembers being in a village in northern india in the mid-1980s where about 30 percent of the residents had goiter. “it was very visible,” he says. “then we got salt iodized all over the country. when i went back to the same village 15 years later, all the goiter had disappeared.”
mannar has used his expertise to develop an iodized-salt testing kit now widely used around the world. under his leadership, mi claims it has raised global iq levels by nearly 40 countries set up universal salt iodization programs.
salt iodization programs have been so successful that mi has launched a project, called double fortification, to fortify salt with iron as well as iodine. almost half of all women and preschool children in developing countries do not get the iron they need from foods such as meats, poultry, and fish. that often leads to anemia.
people with anemia have fewer red blood cells and don’t get enough oxygen to fuel the body. they feel exhausted and are more susceptible to infections. iron deficiencies also can impair the mental development of babies and young children.
mannar worked with food engineers at the university of toronto to solve the technical problem of double-fortifying salt with both iron and iodine. “it was quite a challenge getting iron and iodine in salt because they compete with each other,” he says. the solution was to spray each iron particle with a vegetable fat that creates a protective coat and prevents the iron from reacting with the iodine.
on a visit to a high school in his native country, mannar was amazed by the differences he saw in teenage girls who were getting iron on a regular basis. “in india, about 75 percent of women are anemic. girls like this used to be lethargic and weak,” he says. “i’ve never seen girls so active, excited, and upbeat.”
what does the author imply about the effects of fortification (iodization) of salt in the town in northern india?