ArticleBMC pregnancy and childbirth2016
A mixed method study exploring adherence to and acceptability of small quantity lipid-based nutrient supplements (SQ-LNS) among pregnant and lactating women in Ghana and Malawi.
Article in BMC pregnancy and childbirth, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to 2 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 32 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Efficacy of Lipid-based Nutrient Supplements (LNS) for Pregnant and Lactating Women and Their Infants
A Research Plan for a Randomised, Single-blind, Parallel Group Controlled Trial in Rural Malawi, Testing the Health Effects of Supplementing Maternal Diet During Pregnancy and Lactation and Infant Diet From 6 to 18 Months of Age With High-energy, Micronutrient Fortified Lipid-based Nutrient Supplements (LNS)
Who cites it
32 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Pooled it
- Community-Based Child Food Interventions/Supplements for the Prevention of Wasting in Children Up to 5 Years at Risk of Wasting and Nutritional Oedema: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Nutrition reviews · 2025Pooled it
- A systematic review of the biological mediators of fat taste and smell.Physiological reviews · 2023Pooled it
- Multiple-micronutrient supplementation for women during pregnancy.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2019Pooled it
- Lipid-based nutrient supplements for maternal, birth, and infant developmental outcomes.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2018Pooled it
- Trial
- Prevalence of morbidity symptoms among pregnant and postpartum women receiving different nutrient supplements in Ghana and Malawi: A secondary outcome analysis of two randomised controlled trials.Maternal & child nutrition · 2023Trial
- Compliance with and acceptability of two fortified balanced energy protein supplements among pregnant women in rural Nepal.Maternal & child nutrition · 2022Trial
- Home consumption of two fortified balanced energy protein supplements by pregnant women in Burkina Faso.Maternal & child nutrition · 2021Trial
- Trial
- Acceptability of 12 fortified balanced energy protein supplements - Insights from Burkina Faso.Maternal & child nutrition · 2021Trial
- Supplementation with Small-Quantity Lipid-Based Nutrient Supplements Does Not Increase Child Morbidity in a Semiurban Setting in Ghana: A Secondary Outcome Noninferiority Analysis of the International Lipid-Based Nutrient Supplements (iLiNS)-DYAD Randomized Controlled Trial.The Journal of nutrition · 2020Trial
- Thymic size is increased by infancy, but not pregnancy, nutritional supplementation in rural Gambian children: a randomized clinical trial.BMC medicine · 2019Trial
- Ghanaian parents' perceptions of pre and postnatal nutrient supplements and their effects.Maternal & child nutrition · 2018Trial
- Acceptability and Utilization of Three Nutritional Supplements during Pregnancy: Findings from a Longitudinal, Mixed-Methods Study in Niger.Nutrients · 2018Trial
- Supplementation during pregnancy with small-quantity lipid-based nutrient supplements or multiple micronutrients, compared with iron and folic acid, increases women's urinary iodine concentration in semiurban Ghana: A randomized controlled trial.Maternal & child nutrition · 2018Trial
- Maternal Supplementation with Small-Quantity Lipid-Based Nutrient Supplements Compared with Multiple Micronutrients, but Not with Iron and Folic Acid, Reduces the Prevalence of Low Gestational Weight Gain in Semi-Urban Ghana: A Randomized Controlled Trial.The Journal of nutrition · 2017Trial
- Acceptability, feasibility and equity implications of nutritional supplementation interventions for the prevention of wasting in infants and young children: A rapid qualitative evidence synthesis.African journal of primary health care & family medicine · 2026Review
- Article
- Fund contraction challenges for supplies for maternal and newborn health services in low- and middle-income countries: a scoping review.BMC public health · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundSupplementing pregnant and lactating mothers with small quantity lipid-based nutrient supplements (SQ-LNS) has resulted in improvements in birth outcomes in some low-income settings. In order to be effective, SQ-LNS must be consumed regularly over sustained periods.
methodsThe objective was to assess and compare acceptability of and adherence to SQ-LNS consumption among pregnant and lactating women in Ghana and Malawi throughout 12 months of supplementation. We enrolled women before 20 gestation weeks into randomized trials in Ghana (n = 1320) and Malawi (n = 869). In the SQ-LNS group participants received a 20 g sachet of supplement per day during pregnancy and the first 6 months of lactation. In the control groups participants received multiple micronutrients (MMN) during pregnancy and lactation or iron and folic acid (IFA) during pregnancy and calcium during lactation. We used questionnaires to collect data on self-reported adherence to daily use of supplements and conducted in-depth interviews with women in the SQ-LNS group to examine acceptability.
resultsThe mean self-reported adherence during the supplementation period was lower in Ghana (79.9 %) than in Malawi (91.7 %) for all supplements (difference 11.8 %, P < 0.001). Over time, adherence increased in Malawi but decreased in Ghana. In both countries, adherence in the SQ-LNS group was non-inferior to that in the control groups. Participants typically reported consuming SQ-LNS as instructed but when interviewers queried about experiences, most of the women described incidents of non-adherence. A usual reason for not consuming SQ-LNS was nausea and vomiting during pregnancy. Especially in Malawi, women reported sharing SQ-LNS with families and friends. Sustained use of SQ-LNS was attributed to expected health benefits and favorable sensory attributes. Often women compared their pregnancy to previous ones, and were of the view that SQ-LNS made a positive difference.
conclusionSelf-reported sustained adherence to consume SQ-LNS daily was high in both sites but lower in Ghana than in Malawi. In Ghana, adherence decreased over time whereas in Malawi adherence increased. Acceptability and adherence appeared interlinked, complex and context-related. Sustained consumption of SQ-LNS may require tailoring interventions by context.
trial registrationThe Ghana trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT00970866 , and the Malawi trial as NCT01239693 .
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.