Sprinkles supplements have been solving iron deficiency for 20 years

As the world got ready to welcome the new millennium, pediatric nutritionist Dr. Stanley Zlotkin was presented by UNICEF with a monumental challenge: solving iron deficiency in infants in lower-income countries. Not one to balk at a task that could change the world, Dr. Zlotkin invented ‘micronutrient powders’ (Sprinkles) in 2006 — a powdered supplement containing iron and 15 other vitamins and minerals essential for healthy infant development.

Iron deficiency and anemia were still critical issues in the 1990s, even after most vitamin and mineral deficiencies had been solved. “Liquid iron supplements all tasted terrible, they stained a child’s teeth, and the efficacy wasn’t high at all,” said Dr. Zlotkin, reflecting on the original meeting with UNICEF.

But Dr. Zlotkin would find a solution quickly enough, based on the common practice of fortifying baby foods in Canada.

“Because of fortification, babies in Canada rarely have problems with iron deficiency or other mineral or vitamin deficiencies,” said Dr. Zlotkin. “But in lower-income countries, parents don’t buy baby food; they make their own from local commodities.”

The solution, then, was fortifying the homemade baby food.

Zlotkin’s Sprinkles supplements look like salt and pepper, and come in a small sachet, each individualized by country. Dr. Zlotkin ran clinical trials, shared the research with UNICEF, and found manufacturers in multiple countries. The World Health Organization endorsed the innovation, and mass production and shipping began.

Twenty years after it was first produced, Sprinkles are still being used around the world to help infants get the essential nutrients they need.

“Sprinkles is now widely accepted as one of the best ways to prevent and treat iron deficiency and other nutrient deficiencies,” says Dr. Zlotkin. Between 12 million and 18 million sachets are distributed globally each year.

At a glance

Issue

Iron deficiency and anemia are global issues for infants who are fed non-fortified baby food. Existing iron supplements were not suitable for infants, and so a better alternative was required to fortify homemade baby food.

Research

With funding from CIHR, USAID, and private foundations, Dr. Stanley Zlotkin and his research team developed Sprinkles, an iron and nutrient supplement powder for fortifying baby food. Since 2006, tens of millions of infants a year in more than 50 countries have benefited from the Sprinkles supplement.