Sight and Life Magazine 1/2011

90 WHAT'S NEWA2Z: The USAID Micronutrient and ChildBlindness Project Releases Five New Publicationsed to Support Food Fortification EffortsBank11WestA2Z: The USAID Micronutrient and Child BlindnessProject consolidates, builds, and expands on USAID’s longterminvestment in micronutrients, child survival, and nutrition.Food fortification is viewed by A2Z as an important strategyin achieving its goal and focus countries have includedBangladesh, Cambodia, the ECSA region, India, Nepal,Philippines, Tanzania, Uganda and the West Bank. A2Z haveprovided technical assistance to the Palestinian Authority inorder to increase the provision of essential micronutrientsin the Palestinian diet, thereby reducing the risk of micronutrientdeficiencies in the West Bank.> Manual of Methods for Determining Micronutrientsin Fortified Foods> Inspection Manual for Monitoring Salt andFlour Fortification> Analysis of Inspection Results from Salt andWheat Flour SamplesAll five publications are available athttp://a2zproject.org/node/89In line with this, it recently released five publicationsfocused on the West Bank:> Determining the Dietary Patterns and BiochemicalMarkers among Women and Children in Hebronand Gaza City> The Demand for Locally ManufacturedComplementary Food Products among PalestinianCaregiversWHO Launch a Set of Recommendations onrketing of Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages12drenAccording to the WHO, non-communicable diseases(NCDs) represent a leading threat to human health and socioeconomicdevelopment. Eighty percent of NCD deaths occurin low- and middle income countries. And, while deathsfrom NCDs primarily occur in adulthood, the risks associatedwith an unhealthy diet begin in childhood and build upthroughout life.“The already heavy burden caused by NCDs, along with thefact that the majority of these deaths are premature andcould be averted, provide a strong public health and policyimperative to act,” states Dr Ala Alwan, the Assistant Director-General Non-communicable Diseases and Mental Health ofthe WHO, in the foreword to a new WHO publication entitled“Set of recommendations on the marketing of food and nonalcoholicbeverages to children.”