Supplement use and micronutrient intake among children aged 6 to 59 months receiving care at Basic Health Unit

Abstract

Objective: To describe supplement use and micronutrient intake from food and supplementation amongchildren aged 6 to 59 months receivingcare atBasic Health Units of the Brazilian Unified Health System in Rio de Janeiro. Methods:This cross-sectional studycollected data on supplement use and dietary intake using a24-hrecall. Analyses were conducted in R. Results:Overallsupplement use was 51.0%, including14.1% for iron, 24.6% for vitamin A, and 36.2% for vitamin C. Mean micronutrient intake from both food and supplements exceeded the Estimated Average Requirement; however, 45.4% of children had inadequate calcium intake. Conclusion:Strengtheningpolicies that promote adequate and healthy diets,increasingcoverage of Ministry of Health supplementation programs, and discouraging the indiscriminate use of unnecessary supplementsare essential.