Effectiveness of Fortification With Folic Acid and Vitamin B12 Among Teenage Girls

Plain-language summary

Folic acid and vitamin B12 play an interdependent role in key cellular processes, namely deoxyribonucleic acid synthesis, cell division, red blood cell formation, and nervous system myelination. A deficiency of either vitamin will predispose teenagers to many diseases, which persist across their lifespan. Fortification of food with micronutrients has been promoted to reduce micronutrient deficiencies. A large segment of vulnerable populations in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) resides in rural settings and has limited access to large-scale commercialized fortified foods. In such operational constraints, the use of locally (small-scale) fortified cereals could be an alternative intervention. The study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of small scale folic acid and vitamin B12 fortified cereals in improving folate and vitamin B12 status, growth velocity, puberty status, anaemia, cognitive development and mental health among teenage girls, in rural rift valley of Ethiopia.

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