A systematic review and meta-analysis of available randomised controlled trials (RCTs) was conducted to evaluate the effect of zinc (Zn) intake on growth in infants. Out of 5500 studies identified through electronic searches and reference lists, 19 RCTs were selected after applying the exclusion/inclusion criteria. The influence of Zn intake on growth was considered in the overall meta-analysis. Other variables were also taken into account as possible effect modifiers: Nevertheless, the effect magnitude was small. Our results indicate that Zn intake increases growth parameters of infants. Nonetheless, interpretation of these results should be carefully considered.
It has been suggested that South Asian (SA) women are abandoning nutritionally-superior indigenous weaning practices in favour of poorer British weaning practices (1) . The present study aims to explore the weaning practices of SA women living in Britain and the sources of information that affect their nutritional choices.Two focus groups (FG) and seven individual interviews were conducted with twelve women of SA origin living in Bradford, UK in order to explore social and cultural beliefs surrounding food choices, including a discussion of the weaning process. The 2 FG consisted of four and five participants respectively and were held to develop ideas, highlight problems and facilitate the emergence of data that reflected participants' realities (2) . The FG and the interviews were transcribed verbatim and discussions classified into themes using quotes from the transcriptions (3) . In addition, information about sources of dietary information was collected by self-administered, tick box questionnaire from pregnant women as part of the Born in Bradford prospective cohort study at the Bradford Royal Infirmary (BRI). This cohort included women of all ethnicities attending the clinic for glucose tolerance testing at the BRI.Preliminary analysis indicates that mothers found that the weaning recipes they received were bland and that the infants did not mature to develop a taste for their own cultural food. FG discussions revealed that, although mothers complied with some of the advice given to them such as feeding a low-salt diet, they also 'followed their own heart' to allow the infant to develop tastes belonging to their own culture.A total of 1306 sets of questionnaire data were collected. Classified into ethnicity, 429 and 517 sets of valid data were collected from Asian or Asian British (SA) and Caucasian (C) groups respectively. Health visitors were the most popular choice as a source of nutritional knowledge among both the SA and C groups, with 38 % and 28 % respectively choosing this option. Family members, however, were more popular among the SA group than the C group, with 28% and 20 % respectively choosing this option and 22 % and 34 % respectively choosing magazines, newspapers and books.These data indicate that SA mothers value the advice given by health visitors; however, qualitative data suggest that there are problems integrating advice from health professionals with cultural norms. Weaning advice given should take into consideration traditional customs to inform good nutritional practices during the weaning process.
Infants born to women of South Asian origin in England have a lower birth weight than the UK general population (1) and this is evident in women of South Asian origin born in and outside the UK (2) . The cause is yet largely unknown but as maternal nutrition can account for up to 5.0% variance in birth weight further investigation is required (3) . The primary objective of this study was to examine patterns of nutritional supplementation during the later stages of pregnancy and to consider that pattern in relation to birth weight of infants born to South Asian (Pakistani, Indian and Bangladeshi women) and White women living in Bradford. A secondary objective was to determine the most frequently accessed sources of dietary advice during pregnancy in both ethnic groups.Pregnant women (26-28 weeks gestation) attending the Bradford Royal Infirmary for a glucose tolerance test were recruited as part of the larger Born in Bradford project (BiB) (4) . Five hundred and eleven White and 651 South Asian women completed a partly intervieweradministered and self-administered questionnaire to gather data regarding supplement use and sources of nutritional advice during pregnancy, including advice from family members, friends, magazines/newspapers, books, GP/Doctor, midwives/health visitors and others. Birth weight data was subsequently collected from all women.Chi-squared analysis (SPSS v18) revealed a positive association between ethnicity and supplement use at 26-28 weeks gestation (P < 0.001) with South Asian women being more likely to use nutritional supplements than White women. Specifically, the use of folic acid and Fe was significantly higher in South Asian women compared with White women (P < 0.001), whereas multivitamins were more frequently taken by the White women (P < 0.001). Term birth weight was significantly lower for South Asian (P < 0.001) compared with White infants. South Asian women who took Fe supplements had infants with greater term birth weights than South Asian women who did not (P = 0.047) but further potential confounding variables would need to be considered before any causal link could be identified. In both ethnic groups, the most frequently reported source of nutrition advice during pregnancy was from midwives and health visitors (representing 37 and 29 % of all responses from the South Asian and White women, respectively), with advice from family members the second most frequently reported (28 and 20 % of all responses from South Asian and White women, respectively).The potential that supplementation in South Asian women could be associated with higher birth weights in full-term infants justifies further examination. In addition, the primary sources of nutritional advice during pregnancy for both ethnic groups are midwives and health visitors indicating that these are both important means of imparting nutrition-related health messages to pregnant women.
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