Supplementation with zinc reduced diarrhea and other infections in malnourished children, according to a study published in The Cochrane Library. This report marks the first Cochrane systematic review to focus on zinc as a means to prevent childhood death, including deaths caused by diarrhea, one of the biggest killers of children under the age of five.
 
Zinc is a micronutrient with important roles in growth and in the immune, nervous and reproductive systems. It is not naturally present in the body, so zinc is introduced through diet or supplementation. It is estimated that more than one out of six people globally are deficient in zinc and that around one in every 58 deaths in children under five is related to zinc deficiency. Zinc deficiency is common in Southeast Asia, sub-Saharan Africa and parts of Latin America.
 
The study’s authors were interested in whether zinc supplements could reduce childhood death and disease and help support growth. They reviewed data from 80 trials involving 205,401 children aged six months to 12 years, mostly in low and middle-income countries. Overall, they concluded that zinc supplementation could benefit children as part of wider programs to address public health and nutrition challenges in these countries.
 
“We should remember that supplements are not a substitute for a well-balanced diet,” said senior researcher Professor Zulfiqar Bhutta from the Center of Excellence in Women and Child Health, Aga Khan University, Karachi, Pakistan, and Sick Kids Center for Global Child Health, Toronto, Canada. “However, in countries where zinc deficiency is common, supplements may help to reduce child deaths and related diseases in the short-term.”
 
The researchers found that children supplemented with zinc were less likely to get diarrhea, and even found that children given zinc were even slightly taller by the end of the trials compared to those who did not. However, healthy eating is more important for growth. “Eating foods with balanced energy and protein and multiple micronutrients would probably have a larger effect for many malnourished children,” said Evan Mayo-Wilson, the lead author based at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore, Maryland.
 
Although side effects of zinc supplements included an increase in vomiting, the researchers believe the overall the benefits of zinc outweigh the negative effects.
 
Dr. David Tovey, editor-in-chief of Cochrane, said, “Policymakers in low and middle income countries need evidence that directly addresses the needs of their own health services. This comprehensive review makes a very valuable contribution to the evidence base around interventions may make an important contribution to improving Global Health.”
 
For more information, read the review in The Cochrane Library.