Folate Status of Women and Children in Africa – Current Situation and Improvement Strategies

Bationo, Fabrice; Songré-Ouattara, Laurencia T.; Hama-Ba, Fatoumata; Baye, Kaleab; Hémery, Youna; Parkouda, Charles; Lingani-Sawadogo, Hagrétou; Diawara, Bréhima; Humblot, Christèle

doi:10.1080/87559129.2019.1608558

Cited by 15 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…Iron, zinc, folate, and vitamin A deficiencies remain a big public health threat in Africa as affected women tend to have children with the same problems and consequences accumulate in the families if nothing is done to correct the situation [ 25 , 32 , 33 ]. There is still a need to improve maternal nutrition for better pregnancy outcomes [ 26 , 28 ].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Diarrhea can be due to low hygiene, but also malnutrition has a contribution in the frequent occurrence [16,24]. Iron deficiency in women of reproductive age remains high in SSA despite iron supplement interventions [25][26][27][28]. It is believed that iron deficiency contributes to complicated pregnancies and iron deficiency in children which are prevalent in this region [29][30][31].…”

Section: Maternal and Child Nutrition And Healthmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Potential Role of African Fermented Indigenous Vegetables in Maternal and Child Nutrition in Sub-Saharan Africa

Irakoze

Wafula²,

Owaga

2021

International Journal of Food Science

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Hunger and malnutrition continue to affect Africa especially the vulnerable children and women in reproductive age. However, Africa has indigenous foods and associated traditional technologies that can contribute to alleviation of hunger, malnutrition, and communicable and noncommunicable diseases. The importance of African indigenous vegetables is undeniable, only that they are season-linked and considered as “food for poor” despite their high nutritional contents. The utilization of African indigenous vegetables (AIVs) is hindered by postharvest losses and antinutrients affecting the bioavailability of nutrients. In Africa, fermentation is among the oldest food processing technologies with long history of safe use. Apart from extending shelf life and improving food organoleptic properties, fermentation of African indigenous vegetables (AIVs) is known to improve food nutritional values such as proteins, minerals, vitamins, and other beneficial phytochemicals. It can also increase bioavailability of various vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals and increase synthesis of vital blood pressure regulators thus protecting against cardiovascular diseases and cancer and further helping fight certain malnutrition deficiencies. Some lactic acid bacteria (LAB) involved in food fermentation are known to produce exopolysaccharides with cholesterol-lowering, immunomodulator, antioxidant, and anticancer properties. Fermented foods (vegetables) are superior in quality and safety since most microorganisms involved in fermentation are good starter cultures that can inhibit the growth of foodborne pathogens and detoxify harmful compounds in foods. Thus, fermented foods can boost growth and well-being in children and women due to their higher nutritional contents. Therefore, fermentation of AIVs can contribute to the attainment of food and nutrition security especially among women and children who rely on these vegetables as a staple source of micronutrients and income. These benefits have a positive impact on the implementation of the second sustainable development goals and African Union agenda 2063. This review is aimed at shedding light on the potential of African fermented indigenous vegetables in combating maternal and child malnutrition in Sub-Sahara Africa.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Maternal and Child Nutrition And Healthmentioning

confidence: 99%

Potential Role of African Fermented Indigenous Vegetables in Maternal and Child Nutrition in Sub-Saharan Africa

Irakoze

Wafula²,

Owaga

2021

International Journal of Food Science

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“…The prevalence of folic acid supplementation in Africa varies widely and showed folate deficiencies. Nevertheless, it is still difficult to conclude on the extent of folate deficiencies in Africa due to the limited amount of data available [38]. In addition, neural tube defects are influenced by certain drugs (e.g., valproic acid, if given during 4th-week development as the neural folds are fusing), prenatal factors (e.g., maternal infection or thyroid disorder, Rh factor incompatibility, and some hereditary conditions), presence of chronic disease during pregnancy, and substance use during pregnancy [1,2,12,14,18,25,39].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Birth prevalence of neural tube defects and associated risk factors in Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis

2021

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Background Neural tube defects are common congenital anomalies that result from early malformation in the development of the spinal cord and brain. It is related to substantial mortality, morbidity, disability, and psychological and economic costs. The aim of this review is to determine the pooled birth prevalence of neural tube defects and associated risk factors in Africa. Methods The first outcome of this review was the pooled birth prevalence of the neural tube defects and the second outcome was the pooled measure of association between neural tube defects and associated risk factors in Africa. We systematically searched PubMed, PubMed Central, Joanna Briggs Institute, Google Scopus, Cochrane Library, African Journals Online, Web of Science, Science Direct, Google Scholar, and Medline databases. The heterogeneity of studies was assessed using the Cochrane Q test statistic, I2 test statistic, and, visually, using Forest and Galbraith’s plots. A random-effect model was applied to get the pooled birth prevalence of neural tube defects. Subgroup, sensitivity, meta-regression, time-trend, and meta-cumulative analyses were undertaken. The fixed-effect model was used to analyze the association between neural tube defects and associated risk factors. Results Forty-three studies with a total of 6086,384 participants were included in this systematic review and meta-analysis. The pooled birth prevalence of the neural tube defects was 21.42 (95% CI (Confidence Interval): 19.29, 23.56) per 10,000 births. A high pooled birth prevalence of neural tube defects was detected in Algeria 75 (95% CI: 64.98, 85.02), Ethiopia 61.43 (95% CI: 46.70, 76.16), Eritrea 39 (95% CI: 32.88, 45.12), and Nigeria 32.77 (95% CI: 21.94, 43.59) per 10,000 births. The prevalence of neural tube defects has increased over time. Taking folic acid during early pregnancy, consanguineous marriage, male sex, and substance abuse during pregnancy were assessed and none of them was significant. Conclusions The pooled birth prevalence of neural tube defects in Africa was found to be high. The risk factors evaluated were not found significant.

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“…The prevalence of NTDs is significantly higher (>20%) in low-income countries than in high-income countries (<5%), and it is well established that the consumption of folate rich foods, fortified foods, dietary supplements, or a combination of strategies can reduce the prevalence of this disease ( Rogers et al, 2018 ). In situations where the latter two options of fortification and supplementation are not possible, it is particularly important to provide a source of folate rich foods or to improve the folate content of commonly consumed staples ( Bationo et al, 2020 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Genome-Wide Association Study of Seed Folate Content in Common Bean

et al. 2021

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Plant-derived folates (Vitamin B9) are essential components of the human diet. They provide one-carbon units that are required for the synthesis of nucleic acids and proteins, and folate deficiency is associated with numerous adverse health conditions. The development of high-folate cultivars of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) and other staple crops is an important tool to combat folate deficiency. A population of 96 P. vulgaris accessions, representing major North American market classes, was grown in 2 years in Ontario, Canada. The population was genotyped for 5,361 molecular markers with an Illumina Infinium platform. Total folate was extracted from mature seeds using the tri-enzyme extraction method and quantified based on a microbiological assay with Lactobacillus rhamnosus. Significant genetic diversity for folate content was observed among the population in both years of study, and folate content had a range 113–222 μg per 100 g of seeds. Quantitative trait loci (QTL) for seed folate content were identified based on a genome-wide association study (GWAS). Six QTL were identified on Chr. 4, 6, 8, and 11, with three in each year of field trials. Both QTL on Chr. 11 occurred in genomic regions that were syntenic to seed folate QTL detected in previous work with P. vulgaris, Z. mays, and O. sativa. Candidate genes were identified for these QTL that might be targets for the development of molecular markers for selecting P. vulgaris cultivars with improved seed folate content. This work reports the largest survey of genetic diversity for seed folate content in P. vulgaris and identified several genotypes, including SCN4, Bat 93, OAC Redstar, and Pompadour 1014, that would be useful for breeding beans with higher than average folate levels.

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Folate Status of Women and Children in Africa – Current Situation and Improvement Strategies

Cited by 15 publications

References 39 publications

Potential Role of African Fermented Indigenous Vegetables in Maternal and Child Nutrition in Sub-Saharan Africa

Potential Role of African Fermented Indigenous Vegetables in Maternal and Child Nutrition in Sub-Saharan Africa

Birth prevalence of neural tube defects and associated risk factors in Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Genome-Wide Association Study of Seed Folate Content in Common Bean

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