| Summary: | Iron deficiency-anaemia is a major public health problem worldwide, especially in developing
countries. Infants and young children aged between 6-24 months are one of the most
vulnerable groups. Although iron intervention programme, such as iron-folate tablets, have
been implemented for pregnant women at the national level in many countries, a suitable
effective public health strategy to control childhood anaemia remains to be established. In
response to this need, researchers at the Hospital for Sick Children and the University of
Toronto in Canada developed "Sprinkles", an innovative 'home-fortification' strategy.
Sprinkles consist of microencapsulated iron (as ferrous fumarate) and other essential
micronutrients in powder fonn that are packed into single serve sachets, which are to be mixed
into any kind of weaning food right before serving. The efficacy of Sprinkles in improving
anaemia status of young children has been tested in several countries around the world. A
previous efficacy trial in Bangladesh, testing daily and weekly administration of Sprinkles,
revealed in focus group discussions that caregivers preferred more flexible instructions for
Sprinkles use. Therefore, in this study, the flexible administration of Sprinkles was examined
on the basis that it may increase programme effectiveness by improving adherence.
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