Development of Ready-to-use Maize and Bean Based Therapeutic Foods for the Recovery of Uncomplicated Severe Acute Malnourished Children Aged from 6 to 59 Months

Ready-to-use therapeutic foods (RUTF) play a fundamental role in the management protocol for severe acute malnutrition in children aged 6 to 59 months. Their availability, , therefore, constitutes a major issue in the fight against infant morbidity and mortality in developing countries. In Côte d'Ivoire, frequent shortages of RUTF are observed in the majority of health structures with repercussions on the level of performance of nutritional programs. Faced with this situation, an Ivorian research team proposed formulating therapeutic foods based on local products. The study was carried out at the National Institute of Public Health and the Nangui Abrogoua University of Côte d'Ivoire. The objective was to develop a formula meeting the recommended nutritional and microbiological requirements in order to use it as a substitute for reference products. It made it possible to develop a ready-to-use therapeutic food using the linear programming technique, then produced using traditional methods. The nutritional and microbiological qualities were determined and confirm that the formula based on corn and beans meets the recommended nutritional and microbiological needs for severely acutely malnourished children without complications. It will be subject to current clinical trial processes in order to use it with complete peace of mind.