BackgroundThe incidence of vitamin D defi ciency is unclear in the context of continuing demographic changes and the introduction of new public health measures. Methods All cases in which vitamin D defi ciency was suspected as the primary cause of the clinical presentation were studied.

This is the first systematic review to evaluate CF practices in SA in India. Campaigns to change health and nutrition behaviour and revision of nationwide child health nutrition programmes are needed to meet the substantial unmet needs of these children.

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ObjectiveSuboptimal nutrition among children remains a problem among South Asian (SA) families. Appropriate complementary feeding (CF) practices can greatly reduce this risk. Thus, we undertook a systematic review of studies assessing CF (timing, dietary diversity, meal frequency and influencing factors) in children aged <2 years in Pakistan.DesignSearches between January 2000 and June 2016 in MEDLINE, EMBASE, Global Health, Web of Science, OVID Maternity & Infant Care, CINAHL, Cochrane Library, BanglaJOL, POPLINE and WHO Global Health Library. Eligibility criteria: primary research on CF practices in SA children aged 0–2 years and/or their families. Search terms: ‘children’, ‘feeding’ and ‘Asians’ with their derivatives. Two researchers undertook study selection, data extraction and quality appraisal (EPPI-Centre Weight of Evidence).ResultsFrom 45 712 results, seventeen studies were included. Despite adopting the WHO Infant and Young Child Feeding guidelines, suboptimal CF was found in all studies. Nine of fifteen studies assessing timing recorded CF introduced between 6 and 9 months. Five of nine observed dietary diversity across four of seven food groups; and two of four, minimum meal frequency in over 50 % of participants. Influencing factors included lack of CF knowledge, low maternal education, socio-economic status and cultural beliefs.ConclusionsThis is the first systematic review to evaluate CF practices in Pakistan. Campaigns to change health and nutrition behaviour are needed to meet the substantial unmet needs of these children.

Background: Sub-optimal nutrition among children remains a problem across South Asia (SA). Appropriate complementary feeding practices (CFP) can greatly reduce this risk. The primary objective of this systematic review (SR) of CF studies was to assess timing, dietary diversity, meal frequency and influencing factors in children under two in Bangladesh.