Effect of Preventive Supplementation With Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food on the Nutritional Status, Mortality, and Morbidity of Children Aged 6 to 60 Months in Niger

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Abstract
Wasting (weight-for-height z score [WHZ] <−2 of the National Center for Health Statistics [NCHS] reference median) affects approximately 10% of the world's children younger than 5 years1 and is an important contributor to the population-attributable risk of child mortality and overall burden of disease.2 New outpatient and community-based models for the treatment of wasting have been shown effective in the rehabilitation of children with severe wasting.3,4 These models are made possible largely with the use of ready-to-use therapeutic foods (RUTFs). These foods are energy-dense, micronutrient-enriched pastes with a nutritional profile similar to the traditional F-100 milk-based diet used in inpatient therapeutic feeding programs and are often made up of peanuts, oil, sugar, and milk powder.5,6