Iron-Rich Spirulina for Overcoming Anemia in Young Women

The top most recommendation by the panel of experts at the Copenhagen Consensus 2012 was "micronutrient intervention" to have the most leverage to make an impact under budget restrained conditions. Almost 2 billion people around the world suffer from iron deficiency (ID), or its more severe form iron deficiency anemia (IDA). ID affects the health and productivity of all, the most vulnerable being young children, adolescent girls and young women in the childbearing age. Poor assimilation of Fe from diet, particularly from non-meat sources, is one of the major contributing factors to ID and IDA. It is proposed to tackle the ID problem in young women of childbearing age in two complementary ways: by providing Fe-enriched Spirulina, a nutritious alga; and devise methods for its consumption that will be acceptable from taste considerations. We have already developed methodologies for enhancing Fe content in Spirulina by 3 fold. It is suggested that this organically trapped Fe will be better assimilated by humans compared to the current practice of fortifying with inorganic or organic salts of Fe. Success in combating deficiency is likely to have long term impact on the health and well being of young women and subsequently in their children. This project will demonstrate that blending of Spirulina with local foods can deliver essential micronutrients at low cost, and generate data on the impact of correcting ID/IDA in young women even under resource constraints.