Relationship of homestead food production with night blindness among children below 5 years of age in Bangladesh

OBJECTIVE: To examine the relationship between homestead food production and night blindness among pre-school children in rural Bangladesh in the presence of a national vitamin A supplementation programme. DESIGN: A cross-sectional study. SETTING: A population-based sample of six rural divisions of Bangladesh assessed in the Bangladesh Nutrition Surveillance Project 2001-2005. SUBJECTS: A total of 158 898 children aged 12-59 months. RESULTS: The prevalence rates of night blindness in children among those who did and did not receive vitamin A capsules in the last 6 months were 0·07 % and 0·13 %, respectively. Given the known effect of vitamin A supplementation on night blindness, the analysis was stratified by children's receipt of vitamin A capsules in the last 6 months. Among…