Vitamin A-fortified monosodium glutamate and vitamin A status: a controlled field trial.

A controlled trial of fortification of crystalline monosodium glutamate (MSG) with 810 micrograms RE vitamin A/g was undertaken in an area of endemic vitamin A deficiency in Indonesia. Powdered MSG was used to mask the yellow color of the vitamin A. Fortified MSG was marketed through ordinary channels in five villages in the program area and five nearby villages served as the control area. The product retained 84% of its potency after 4 mo and 57% after 11 mo in the marketplace. Base-line serum and breast-milk vitamin A levels were slightly higher in the control areas. Follow-up serum levels increased dramatically in program villages, 0.67 +/- 0.33 at prefortification base line to 0.92 +/- 0.33 mumol/L (p less than 0.001) at 11 mo after introduction of the fortified product. Breast-milk levels also rose, from 0.60 +/- 0.29 at base line to 0.67 +/- 0.30 mumol/L at 11 mo (p less than 0.05). Serum and breast-milk levels in control villages did not change.