ZINC AND DIARRHEA IN INFANTS

Due to dietary modifications including the intake of cereals, vegetabl es and the frequent use of soy milk instead of breast milk, children i n developing countries with diarrhea frequently suffer from zinc defic iency. Furthermore, diarrhea leads to excess zinc losses. Beside low e nergy intake zinc deficiency contributes to continued diarrhea, which in turn accounts for half of the deaths from diarrhea in children. Zin c supplementation leads to accelerated regeneration of the mucosa, inc reased levels of brush-border enzymes, enhanced cellular immunity and higher levels of secretory antibodies. In addition, in stunted childre n zinc supplementation results in enhanced catch-up growth via higher levels of insulin-like growth factor-I. Growth retardation is closely related to the risk of diarrheal diseases in children. These pathophys iological conclusions are supported by several controlled clinical tri als which have provided evidence that zinc supplementation results in significant reduction in the risk of continued diarrhea. However, it r emains to be clarified whether these benefits are attributable to phar macological effects or if they can be related to the correction of an underlying deficiency state.