Fatty Acid Optimization of Locally Produced Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Foods for the Treatment of Acute Malnutrition in Children Using Linear Programming: An Application to India and Pakistan.
Background/Objectives: Ready-to-use therapeutic foods (RUTFs) are a common treatment for children under five years diagnosed with acute malnutrition. However, traditional RUTFs are often not locally produced, and the costs of the RUTF can be a barrier to access in India and Pakistan. Our goal was to...
| Published in: | Nutrients Vol. 17; no. 23; pp. 3653 - 3665 |
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
| Format: | research tables/charts Journal Article |
| Published: |
MDPI
Dec2025
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| Online Access: | View this record in EBSCOhost |
| fields | @attributes: recordID: 1 pdfLink: plink: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ccm&AN=190517648&site=ehost-live header: @attributes: shortDbName: ccm uiTerm: 190517648 longDbName: CINAHL Complete uiTag: AN controlInfo: bkinfo: dissinfo: jinfo: jid: 20726643 B0TT jtl: Nutrients issn: 20726643 maglogo: N pubinfo: dt: Dec2025 vid: 17 iid: 23 pid: 97109 pub: MDPI artinfo: ui: 190517648 190517648 190517648 10.3390/nu17233653 190517648 ppf: 3653 ppct: 12 formats: tig: atl: Fatty Acid Optimization of Locally Produced Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Foods for the Treatment of Acute Malnutrition in Children Using Linear Programming: An Application to India and Pakistan. aug: au: Ismail, Samir Umesh, Amith Khan, Mohid Moutwakil, Ahmed Nguyen, Tu Dantuluri, Meghana Annadanam, Akhila Prasad, Ayush Multra, Melody Sudhakar, Deepti Mahadevan, Varun Khan, Gul Nawaz Soofi, Sajid West Jr., Keith P. affil: Center for Human Nutrition, Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA sug: subj: Malnutrition Diet Therapy Fatty Acids, omega-3 Therapeutic Use Fatty Acids, omega-6 Therapeutic Use Dietary Supplementation Food, Formulated India Food, Formulated Pakistan Functional Food Human Male Female Infant Child, Preschool India Pakistan Funding Source Experimental Studies Nutritional Assessment Costs and Cost Analysis Microbial Culture and Sensitivity Tests Comparative Studies Nutritive Value Food Analysis Wasting Syndrome Prevention and Control Growth Disorders Prevention and Control Descriptive Statistics Data Analysis Software Infant: 1-23 months Child, Preschool: 2-5 years Male Female ab: Background/Objectives: Ready-to-use therapeutic foods (RUTFs) are a common treatment for children under five years diagnosed with acute malnutrition. However, traditional RUTFs are often not locally produced, and the costs of the RUTF can be a barrier to access in India and Pakistan. Our goal was to utilize linear programming (LP) to generate an RUTF formulation based on ingredients locally available in India and Pakistan. We also aim to evaluate the effectiveness of LP in generating such a recipe that is also nutrient-optimized to promote neurocognitive recovery. Methods: The RUTF recipe was generated by applying linear programming to a database of crop ingredients available in India, subject to nutritional constraints. The resulting formulation was produced and evaluated for nutrition content and shelf life. The efficacy of the LP tool was also evaluated based on the formulated product. Results: We demonstrate that the linear programming tool is largely accurate in predicting the true nutritional content of the formulation. Furthermore, the generated formulation, per 100 g, meets many global macronutrient standards for RUTFs while maintaining a predicted cost that is lower than that of industry-standard products. The conducted shelf-life study indicates the viability of the RUTF throughout an accelerated testing period. In addition, the satisfactory consideration of LA and ALA levels provides our RUTF with the potential to address concerns about low DHA levels, and thereby cognitive health, as compared to traditional RUTFs. Conclusions: We use linear programming to generate an affordable and fatty acid-optimized RUTF based on locally available ingredients. Therefore, this formulation holds immense potential to benefit communities in India and Pakistan facing high levels of child malnutrition. pubtype: Academic Journal doctype: research tables/charts Journal Article ougenre: Article language: English refInfo: holdings: @attributes: islocal: N |
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