INVITATION FOR EXPRESSION OF INTEREST
SIGHT AND LIFE SPECIAL RESEARCH PROJECT GRANT 2010

The theme for 2010 is

Assessing Vitamin A Dietary Intake and Status in  Developing Countries Where Fortified Foods are Commercially Available

Grants each to the value of maximal US$200,000, over a 2 year period, are to be made available to successful applicants. Co-funding by other partners will be considered.

Special Research Project Preamble

Vitamin A is globally recognised as a critical micronutrient for the survival and physical health of children, especially those in developing countries that are exposed to infectious diseases. Vitamin A supplementation has been shown to be one of the most effective large-scale child survival interventions and fortification with vitamin A and other micronutrients is increasingly common; however vitamin A deficiency remains the leading cause of paediatric blindness and a major nutritional determinant of severe infection and mortality amongst children in the developing world. 

There are an estimated 190 million preschool aged children with vitamin A deficiency and mild to moderate vitamin A deficiency appears to be a problem in school-aged and adolescent year. In adulthood there is growing evidence of widespread maternal vitamin A deficiency in developing countries. Vitamin A remains a global priority in addressing micronutrient malnutrition. 

Some concerns have been raised with regards to the levels of intake of vitamin A. In developing countries, some believe that with increasing vitamin A supplementation and fortification, the intake of vitamin A may be reaching the tolerable upper intake level. In developed countries, there is a concern of increased risk of bone fracture associated with vitamin A intakes below the tolerable upper intake level. Public health nutrition interventions need to accommodate potential benefits and risks, that is achieving optimal nutrient intakes with low prevalence of both inadequate and excessive nutrient intakes.

There is currently a lack of high quality vitamin A intake and status data in developing countries. Therefore, SIGHT AND LIFE is calling for expressions of interest to undertake research in developing countries to assess vitamin A dietary intake and status in developing countries where fortified foods are commercially available, in order to gather data on actual vitamin A intake levels.

For details on application process, eligibility criteria, application conditions, and queries please refer to the below pdf-file.

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