Effect of lathyrus protein concentrate feeding on the growing of children

Abstract

To combat protein energy malnutrition (PEM) among poor urban slum children Lathyrus
protein concentrate (LPC) may be a useful supplement. A cross sectional study with a total of
10 children aged 1-3 years was carried to find out the effectiveness of Lathyrus Protein
Concentrate (LPC) feeding on the growth of children. Before intervention the children were
severely underweight. In this program, an intervention of 59.6 gm of Suji based diet along
with 20 gm of LPC was fed to each children daily for a period of 15 weeks.
Mean weight gain was 1.23kg in children fed with Suji containing LPC during a period of 15
weeks intervention. We found a significant positive correlation between weight gain and
duration of LPC containing food supplementation. Effectiveness of the intervention program
for attaining growth among children was 44.05%. The findings reveal that LPC may be
considered as an effective protein concentrate for reducing PEM among the children.