Vitamin A belongs at the top of any list of core 'solutions' for infant mortality and has been called one of the most cost-effective interventions for child health. A Nepali study by JHU ending in 1997 found that giving Vitamin A to pregnant women reduced maternal deaths by 44 percent overall, but a second trial (JiVita1) found no effect in Bangladesh. However, the results for reducing infant/child mortality have been more conclusive (Bangaldesh trial found Vit A at birth reduced infant risk of death by 15%). We will be collecting information on where to purchase Vitamin A for clinics not part of a regular distribution system.

Check here for information on Johns Hopkins' JiVitaLand project and other pathbreaking work on Vitamin A.

Check this link for more information on Vitamin A by the World Bank.

Photo credit:
Read "Discovering JiVitAland." Photos by Saikat Mojumder.
http://magazine.jhsph.edu/2009/fall/online_extras/gallery/index.html?o=6