Insufficient quantities and inadequate quality of complementary foods, together with poor feeding practices, pose a threat to children's health and nutrition. Interventions to improve complementary feeding are critical to reduce all forms of malnutrition, and access to data to ascertain the status of complementary feeding practices is essential for efforts to improve feeding behaviours. However, sufficient data to generate estimates for the core indicators covering the complementary feeding period only became available recently. The current situation of complementary feeding at the global and regional level is reported here using data contained within the UNICEF global database. Global rates of continued breastfeeding drop from 74.0% at 1 year of age to 46.3% at 2 years of age. Nearly a third of infants 4-5 months old are already fed solid foods, whereas nearly 20% of 10-11 months old had not consumed solid foods during the day prior to their survey. Of particular concern is the low rate (28.2%) of children 6-23 months receiving at least a minimally diverse diet. Although rates for all indicators vary by background characteristics, feeding behaviours are suboptimal even in richest households, suggesting that cultural factors and poor knowledge regarding an adequate diet for young children are important to address. In summary, far too few children are benefitting from minimum complementary feeding practices. Efforts are needed not only to improve children's diets for their survival, growth, and development but also for governments to report on progress against global infant and young child feeding indicators on a regular basis.

Micronutrient malnutrition is a key driver of morbidity and mortality for millions of children in South Asia. Understanding the specific micronutrients lacking in the diet during the complementary feeding period is essential for addressing undernutrition caused by inadequate diets. A Comprehensive Nutrient Gap Assessment was used to synthesize diverse evidence and estimate the public health significance of complementary-feeding micronutrient gaps and identify evidence gaps in 8 countries in South Asia. There were important gaps across the region in iron, zinc, vitamin A, folate, vitamin B12, and, to a lesser extent, calcium and vitamin C. The most nutrient-dense, whole-food sources of these micronutrients include liver, small fish, eggs, ruminant meat, and dark leafy greens. Investment is needed in some countries to collect data on micronutrient biomarkers and dietary intakes. A food systems approach is essential for improving child diets and reducing malnutrition, which affects millions of children, their futures, and society at large across South Asia and beyond.

Community-based health and nutrition services were promising platforms for expanding access to interventions such as micronutrient supplements and social and behavior change communication. Investments are needed to support these community-based programs, including training, supplies, supervision and monitoring. To address IUGR at scale, increased access to cash or food transfers could be explored.

Insufficient quantity and inadequate quality of foods in early life are key causes of all forms of malnutrition. Identification of nutrient and dietary gaps in the diets of infants and young children is essential to inform policies and programs designed to improve child diets. A Comprehensive Nutrient Gap Assessment was used to assess the public health significance of nutrient gaps during the complementary feeding period and to identify evidence gaps in 6 countries in Eastern and Southern Africa. Important gaps were identified in iron, vitamin A, zinc, and calcium and, to a lesser extent, vitamin B12 and folate. The best whole-food sources of these micronutrients available in part or all of the countries studied include beef liver, chicken liver, small dried fish, beef, and eggs. Investment is needed in many countries to collect data on micronutrient biomarkers and dietary intake. Strategic actions to improve child diets will require engagement and intervention across relevant systems to accelerate progress on improving the diets of infants and young children.

The impact of diabetes as a comorbid condition in patients with PAD is significant, both clinically and economically. Factors that predict increased LOS in patients with PAD are DM, bypass surgery, amputation, CKD stage V, infection, and emergency admission.