Presents technical and practical guidelines that can help countries in the Eastern Mediterranean region develop national programs for the control of iodine deficiency disorders. Guidelines respond to the alarming prevalence of iodine deficiency disorders in this part of the world, despite the availability of inexpensive, simple and effective techniques for prevention and control.
Iodine is a naturally occurring element and inorganic iodines found in the ocean accumulate in fish, shellfish and seaweed. Industrially iodine is used in many applications including the manufacture of inks, dyes, photographic agents and in water-purification. In the health-care industry, iodine is widely used as a disinfectant/biocide and in the production of soaps, bandages, and medicines. Iodine is also included as a salt in some countries to provide dietary supplementation. This Concise International Chemical Assessment Document (CICAD) evaluates the scientific literature on the health aspects of iodine and inorganic iodides. Its focus is on the health effects from environmental exposures beyond those associated with the diet and nutritional supplementation. Radioactive iodine isotopes are regarded as outside the scope of the document.
"Good nutrition is key to maintain or improve health, and people's ability to secure an adequate diet is fundamental to achieving social and economic advances. Although the nutritional status of most people in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region has improved over the last two decades, undernutrition and micronutrient deficiencies remain a serious threat to public health."The purpose of this nutrition review of the MENA region is to develop a base of knowledge and a sector strategy, and to help fulfill the World Bank's mandate for poverty reduction. This is the first comprehensive overview of nutritional issues in the region, putting together the problems in an overall economic development context. The review focuses on the health implications of nutritional issues, and supplements a regional study of food subsidy programs and the regional health, nutrition and population sector strategy paper. It aims to: assess the region's nutritional status; analyze the causes and consequences of nutritional problems and their implications for health; suggest a strategy to improve the nutrition and health of the people in the region; develop a database from available sources and literature.
Presents a strategy and plan of action for the use of simple low-cost technologies to combat the immense problem of iodine deficiency disorders in Eastern Mediterranean countries. Addressed to senior health administrators the booklet has two main parts. The first presents facts and figures depicting the magnitude of the problem posed by iodine deficiency disorders in this part of the world. The second and most extensive part maps out a plan of action including precise steps to be undertaken at stages from 1990 through 1999.
This volume contains the proceedings of a conference held at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda on March 21-23. 1988. jointly sponsored by the International Council for Control of Iodine Deficiency Disorders (ICCIDD) and the Fogarty International Center of the National Institutes of Health. Several themes converged to make this meeting timely. The first is an increasing awareness of iodine deficiency disorders as a world-wide problem of public health and a preventable cause of mental deficiency. and as a subject of scientific effort. Increased interest in these problems owes a great deal to accessibility to remote and under developed areas of the world where iodine deficiency persists. As with any subject. greater scrutiny yields unexpected complexity and interest. It is true that provision of iodine. typically as iodized salt, is the necessary and sufficient preventative for iodine deficiency disorders. without including endemic cretinism. This provision is a governmental, economic and social problem. Apart from this, however, the scientific and medical problem of iodine deficiency and its effect on brain development and function is one of great interest and importance for developmental neurology and psychology. Even though the specific preventative agent is known, we do not totally understand the neurobiological questions raised.
This manual presents an overview of iodine deficiency disorders (IDD) and provides detailed instructions in the monitoring and evaluation of IDD control and prevention programs. Health and nutrition program staff working at the provincial, district and field levels in the public health sector will find this guide particularly useful. It may also be used by interested iodized salt producers and those involved in the formulation of health and nutrition policy and programs. The manual provides information on the selection of appropriate process and impact indicators and techniques on conducting IDD program assessments.
Handbook of Food Fortification and Health: From Concepts to Public Health Applications Volume 2 represents a multidisciplinary approach to food fortification. This book aims to disseminate important material pertaining to the fortification of foods from strategic initiatives to public health applications. Optimal nutritional intake is an essential component of health and wellbeing. Unfortunately situations arise on a local or national scale when nutrient supply or intake is deemed to be suboptimal. As a consequence, ill health occurs affecting individual organs or causing premature death. In terms of public health, malnutrition due to micronutrient deficiency can be quite profound imposing economic and social burdens on individuals and whole communities. This comprehensive text examines the broad spectrum of food fortification in all its manifestations. Coverage includes sections on definitions of fortifications, fortified foods, beverages and nutrients, fortifications with micronutrients, biofortification, impact on individuals, public health concepts and issues, and selective methods and food chemistry. Handbook of Food Fortification and Health: From Concepts to Public Health Applications Volume 2 is an indispensable text designed for nutritionists, dietitians, clinicians and health related professionals.
This publication contains practical guidance on the design, implementation and evaluation of appropriate food fortification programmes. They are designed primarily for use by nutrition-related public health programme managers, but should also be useful to all those working to control micronutrient malnutrition, including the food industry.The guidelines are written from a nutrition and public health perspective, and topics discussed include: the concept of food fortification as a potential strategy for the control of micronutrient malnutrition; the prevalence, causes, and consequences of micronutrient deficiencies, and the public health benefits of micronutrient malnutrition control; technical information on the various chemical forms of micronutrients that can be used to fortify foods; regulation and international harmonisation, communication, advocacy, consumer marketing and public education.
In the past 20 years micronutrients have assumed great public health importance and a considerable amount of research has lead to increasing knowledge of their physiological role. Because it is a rapidly developing field, the WHO and FAO convened an Expert Consultation to evaluate the current state of knowledge. It had three main tasks: to review the full scope of vitamin and minerals requirements; to draft and adopt a report which would provide recommended nutrient intakes for vitamins A, C, D, E, and K; the B vitamins; calcium; iron; magnesium; zinc; selenium; and iodine; to identify key issues for future research and make preliminary recommendations for the handbook. This report contains the outcome of the Consultation, combined with up-to-date evidence that has since become available.
