A randomised controlled open label clinical trial to determine whether addition of indispensable amino acids (IAA) to standard complementary food will reduce occurrence of Environmental Enteric Dysfunction (EED) compared with provision of standard complementary food without IAA in healthy Malawian children aged 18-36 months with or without stunting.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
PREVENTION
Masking
SINGLE
Enrollment
66
Protocol treatment will start within two weeks of enrollment to the study. Following the baseline study assessments, each participant will receive corn-soy bean blended flour porridge supplemented with IAAs (histidine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine, phenylalanine, threonine, tryptophan, and valine) dosed at 12g/d and providing 1.5 times the estimated average requirement (EAR) for a healthy child (Intervention group). The porridge will provide 30% daily energy requirement. The study foods will be taken once daily by the child with at least three observed feeding sessions per week over the 4 weeks of the study to assess compliance. Children in the control arm will receive corn-soy blended flour porridge without added amino acids.
Kamuzu University of Health Sciences
Blantyre, Malawi
corn soy bean flour porridge with added indespensable amino acids
Primary Efficacy Endpoint: We hypothesize that adding 12mg IAA to corn-soy blended flour porridge provided to Malawian children aged 18-36 months with or without stunting will reduce gut permeability as measured by the Lactulose:Rhamonse ratio test when provided over 30 days compared to corn-soy blended flour porridge without added IAA.
Time frame: 30 days
Corn soy bean flour porridge
We hypothesize that adding 12mg IAA to corn-soy blended flour porridge provided to Malawian children aged 18-36 months with or without stunting when provided over 30 days compared to corn-soy blended flour porridge without added IAA will: 1. Increase gut digestive capacity 2. Increase plasma protein absorption 3. Reduce gut bacterial translocation 4. Reduce gut bacterial damage 5. Increase child weight 6. Increase plasma circulating amino acids 7. Increase gut microbial abundance and diversity 8. Increase fat free mass index and fat free percentage
Time frame: 30 days
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