Daily supplementation of a multiple micronutrient powder improves folate but not thiamine, riboflavin, or vitamin B12 status among young Laotian children: a randomized controlled trial

Abstract

Purpose To assess the effects of intervention with a daily multiple micronutrient powder (MNP) on thiamine, riboflavin, folate, and B12 status among young Laotian children. Methods Children (n = 1704) aged 6–23 mo, participating in a double-blind placebo-controlled randomized trial were individually randomized to receive daily either MNP (containing 0.5 mg of thiamine, 0.5 mg riboflavin, 150 μg folic acid, and 0.9 μg vitamin B12 along with 11 other micronutrients) or placebo and followed for ~ 36 weeks. In a randomly selected sub-sample of 260 children, erythrocyte thiamine diphosphate (eThDP), plasma folate and B12 concentrations, and erythrocyte glutathione reductase activation coefficient (EGRac; riboflavin biomarker) were assessed at baseline and endline. Results There was no treatment effect on endline eThDP concentrations (110.6 ± 8.9 nmol/L in MNP vs. 109.4 ± 8.9 nmol/L in placebo group; p = 0.924), EGRac (1.46 ± 0.3 vs. 1.49 ± 0.3; p = 0.184) and B12 concentrations (523.3 ± 24.6 pmol/L vs. 515.9 ± 24.8 pmol/L; p = 0.678). Likewise, the prevalence of thiamine, riboflavin, and B12 deficiencies did not differ significantly between the two groups. However, endline folate concentration was significantly higher in the MNP compared to the placebo group (28.2 ± 0.8 nmol/L vs 19.9 ± 0.8 nmol/L, respectively; p < 0.001), and correspondingly, the prevalence of folate deficiency was significantly lower in the MNP group (1.6% vs 17.4%; p = 0.015). Conclusions Compared to a placebo, daily MNP for 9 months increased only folate but not thiamine, riboflavin, or B12 status in young Laotian children. Trial registration The trial was registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov (NCT02428647) on April 29 2015.

A Review of Foods of Plant Origin as Sources of Vitamins with Proven Activity in Oxidative Stress Prevention according to EFSA Scientific Evidence

“…The Daily Reference Intake (DRI) for riboflavin is 1.4 mg/day [38], and the deficiency of this vitamin is usually caused by an inadequate diet. Riboflavin deficiency is associated with low growth in children, impaired iron absorption, cardiovascular diseases, and peripheral neuropathy [44,45]. In contrast, it has been suggested that the higher dietary intake of riboflavin could be associated with protective effects against aging or certain pathologies such as cancer [45].…”

“…The main dietary sources of this vitamin are meats, dairy products, fatty fish, legumes, liver, nuts, and eggs, as well as some vegetables and fruits [34,44,46,47]. Table 2 includes the ten foods of plant origin with the highest content of riboflavin according to Official Databases of food composition [40][41][42].…”