Iron and zinc supplementation promote motor development and exploratory behavior among Bangladeshi infants

BACKGROUND Iron and zinc deficiency are prevalent during infancy in low-income countries. OBJECTIVES The objectives were to examine whether a weekly supplement of iron, zinc, iron+zinc, or a micronutrient mix (MM) of 16 vitamins and minerals would alter infant development and behavior. DESIGN The participants were 221 infants from rural Bangladesh at risk of micronutrient deficiencies. Development and behavior were evaluated at 6 and 12 mo of age by using the Bayley Scales of Infant Development II and the Home Observation Measurement of Environment (HOME) scale. In this double-blind trial, the infants were randomly assigned to 1 of 5 treatment conditions: iron (20 mg), zinc (20 mg), iron+zinc, MM (16 vitamins and minerals, including iron and zinc), or riboflavin weekly…