Nutrition-sensitive social protection (NSSP) refers to a subset of social protection poverty alleviation programs that include targeting approaches, interventions, and conditions to address the underlying determinants of malnutrition (Ruel 2013). Design features that can enhance nutritional impacts of social protection programs include targeting of transfers to nutritionally vulnerable populations, providing fortified or nutritious foods, behavior change communication (BCC) interventions, establishing…
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How many tablets did you take during pregnancy? Addressing the challenges of maternal micronutrient coverage measurement
To improve birth outcomes and other aspects of maternal and child health and wellbeing, WHO guidance on antenatal care for a positive pregnancy experience, released in 2016 and updated in 2020, recommends micronutrient interventions including, iron and folic acid (IFA), multiple micronutrient supplements (MMS), calcium as well as balanced energy protein (BEP) for general or context-specific delivery. National and global…
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Beyond Borders: Insights from challenges in collecting nutrition data from United States household surveys
Low, middle, and high-income countries (LMIC) face similar challenges when collecting population-level data to inform nutrition policies & programs. Earlier this year, the American Society of Nutrition’s (ASN) Committee on Advocacy and Science Policy published a white paper highlighting the challenges facing the National Health Examination & Nutrition Survey (NHANES) in the United States. Like the Demographic and Health Surveys…
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Why harmonization of food security measurement in phone surveys is needed: Lessons from India
Background Food security is essential for a healthy and productive population. In 1996, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) stated that food security “exists when all people, at all times, have physical, social and economic access to sufficient safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life.” FAO recognized four dimensions…
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Launch of the Compendium of Nutrition Intervention Coverage Indicators & Questions for Household Surveys
We are thrilled to launch the Compendium of Nutrition Intervention Coverage Indicators & Questions for Household Surveys today! The Compendium is a technical resource that can help national and subnational stakeholders fill information gaps around who is receiving nutrition interventions through health systems. Building on a set of indicators proposed in “Measuring the coverage of nutrition interventions along the continuum…
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Let’s make a plan!
Last month the Micronutrient Forum (MNF) released a Micronutrient Data Generation Initiative Strategic Plan—a comprehensive strategy for how to fill long-standing gaps in data on the prevalence of micronutrient deficiencies across low- and middle-income countries. The strategy is noteworthy on multiple levels, but in particular for its theory of change which describes the steps and enabling factors required to achieve…
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Revisiting Core Indicators: Principles from the updated WHO-UNICEF Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF) indicator guidance
In April 2021, WHO and UNICEF released updated definitions and measurement guidance for indicators to assess infant and young child feeding (IYCF) practices. Originally released in 2008, indicators of diet quality for children 0-23 months of age have been an essential tool for policy makers and program planners within and across low- and middle- income countries (LMICs). The indicators, which…
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Nutrition-Sensitive Social Protection Programs: What, Why and How Can We Measure Them?
What is nutrition-sensitive social protection? Nutrition-sensitive sectors address the underlying determinants of maternal and child malnutrition (e.g. food security, education), and investments in these sectors are critical to global strategies for eliminating undernutrition. As a cross-cutting dimension, social protection is core to nutrition-sensitive actions. Social protection initiatives aim to protect families from poverty and vulnerability by offering a mix of…
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Standing Together for Better Nutrition Data during COVID-19 and Beyond
Since mid-2020, DataDENT team members have been actively involved in Standing Together for Nutrition (STfN)—a multidisciplinary consortium of economics, nutrition, and health systems experts committed to addressing COVID-related nutrition challenges. To date the consortium has released two papers presenting results from modeling exercises that project the impacts of COVID-related interruptions to economic and health systems on maternal and child nutrition…
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Tracking India’s Progress on Addressing Malnutrition and Enhancing the Use of Data to Improve Programs
In collaboration with Partnerships and Opportunities to Strengthen and Harmonize Actions for Nutrition in India (POSHAN), NITI Aayog, and ID Insight, DataDENT developed a joint report addressing considerations for improving the availability and use of data to improve nutrition programs in India. The report shares a comprehensive indicator framework aligned with India’s National Nutrition Mission, POSHAN Abhiyaan, and describes a theory…