Abstract

Assessing the Efficacy of Low Cost Indigenously Produced Soya Based Ready to Use Therapeutic Food with Standard Indigenously Produced Peanut Based Ready to Use Therapeutic Food

Background: Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF) is considered a gold standard in management of Severely Acute Malnourished (SAM) children. Its use is limited in resource poor settings due to cost constraint. We prepared Soya based RUTF costing 25% less using WHO recommendations. Objective: To compare efficacy between soya based RUTF named as Soya-Medical Nutrition Therapy (S-MNT) and standard Peanut based RUTF named as Peanut-Medical Nutrition Therapy (P-MNT) in treatment of SAM. Methods: This open randomized controlled trial enrolled children between (6-60) months, diagnosed as SAM by WHO criteria. Subjects were divided into two groups that received S-MNT or P-MNT for 12 weeks. Main outcome measures were rate of weight gain (g/kg/day) and change in nutritional status. Result: Of 125 SAM children enrolled, 78 completed 12 weeks of intervention. At week 2, rate of weight gain in P-MNT was 2.8 g/kg/day and S-MNT was 2.43 g/kg/day (p=0.662). At 12 weeks, it was 0.75 g/kg/day in P-MNT and 0.87 g/kg/day in S-MNT (p=0.821). The mean rate of weight gain in P-MNT group was 2.49 g/kg/day while in S-MNT group was 1.78 g/kg/day which were statistically not significant. 75% subjects recovered from SAM in S-MNT while 89.13% in P-MNT (p=0.496). Pre and Post mean weight in both the groups were significant (p<0.001). 25% subjects had less than 30% consumption of S-MNT compared to 13.04% in P-MNT group.  Conclusion: S-MNT was found to be as efficacious as P-MNT and hence can be a good alternative in SAM management. Soya based RUTF reduces cost of therapy without compromising the nutritional quality of RUTF.

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