Let’s leverage food fortification for healthy outcomes

Today, nearly half of children born in urban and a quarter of those born in rural Kenya are likely to suffer brain and spinal cord defects due to folate (Vitamin B9) deficiency. Moreover, about a third of children are at risk of blindness due to Vitamin A deficiency while 22 per cent are predisposed to anaemia due to iron deficiency.

Zinc deficiency, which often results to compromised immunity, is predominantly high across the entire Kenyan population: over 80 per cent in children, 82 per cent in non-pregnant women, 68 per cent in pregnant women and 75 per cent in men (Kenya National Micronutrient Survey 2011).