Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42400612›Full record

Trial reportEuropean journal of nutrition2026

Effects of vitamin B9 and B12-fortified corn flour on cognitive function in teenage girls: a randomized controlled trial in Ethiopia.

Eshetu Zerihun Tariku, Muluken Bekele Sorrie, Victoria M Leavitt, Maku E Demuyakor, Befikadu Tariku Gutema, Mekdim Kassa, Gesila Endashaw Yesera, Nigus Kabtu Belete, Darik Temesgen Assefa, Gudina Egata and 2 more

Registry-linked trialAbstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in European journal of nutrition, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT06100146 (Does Small Scale Cereal-based Fortification Hold the Key to Improved Micronutrient Status in Ethiopia? The Case of Folic Acid and Vitamin B12 in Teenage Girls in Arba Minch, Ethiopia), which is not on this map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

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.

NCT06100146 nacompletednot on this map

Does Small Scale Cereal-based Fortification Hold the Key to Improved Micronutrient Status in Ethiopia? The Case of Folic Acid and Vitamin B12 in Teenage Girls in Arba Minch, Ethiopia

TypeinterventionalSponsorUniversity GhentRan2023 to 2024Enrolled472ConditionsFolate Deficiency, Vitamin B 12 Deficiency, Anemia, Megaloblastic, Cognitive DevelopmentArmsFolic acid and vitamin B12 fortified flour, Unfortified cereal flour
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

12 authors.

Eshetu Zerihun TarikuCollege of Medicine and Health Sciences, Arba Minch University, Arba Minch, Ethiopia. eshetamu@gmail.com.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5390-0411
Muluken Bekele SorrieCollege of Medicine and Health Sciences, Arba Minch University, Arba Minch, Ethiopia.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3464-2584
Victoria M LeavittDepartment of Neurology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8937-6079
Maku E DemuyakorMcKing Consulting Corporation, Atlanta, USA.
Befikadu Tariku GutemaCollege of Medicine and Health Sciences, Arba Minch University, Arba Minch, Ethiopia.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0574-6074
Mekdim KassaCollege of Medicine and Health Sciences, Arba Minch University, Arba Minch, Ethiopia.
Gesila Endashaw YeseraCollege of Medicine and Health Sciences, Arba Minch University, Arba Minch, Ethiopia.
Nigus Kabtu BeleteCollege of Medicine and Health Sciences, Arba Minch University, Arba Minch, Ethiopia.
Darik Temesgen AssefaCollege of Medicine and Health Sciences, Arba Minch University, Arba Minch, Ethiopia.
Gudina EgataDepartment of Nutrition and Dietetics, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6541-0383
Stefaan De HenauwDepartment of Public Health and Primary Care, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.
Souheila AbbeddouCollege of Medicine and Health Sciences, Arba Minch University, Arba Minch, Ethiopia.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1363-0170

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeAdequate status in vitamins B9 and B12 supports neurological processes, and observational studies consistently associate sufficient intake with enhanced cognitive performance in adolescents. However, causal evidence on whether food fortification with these vitamins improves cognition in healthy adolescent girls remains scarce. This study evaluated the effect of consuming vitamin B9- and B12-fortified corn flour on the cognitive function of teenage girls in Arba Minch, South Ethiopia.

methodsWe conducted a randomized, double-blind, controlled community trial from December 2023 to August 2024. A total of 472 teenage girls from schools within the Arba Minch Health and Demographic Surveillance System were randomly allocated to either the intervention (n = 235) or control group (n = 237). The intervention group received bi-weekly distributions of corn flour fortified with vitamin B9 (2 mg/kg) and B12 (0.02 mg/kg) for six months, while the control group received unfortified corn flour. Cognitive function was assessed using a multidomain test battery at baseline and endline. The intervention effects were analyzed using analysis of covariance.

resultsOf the 472 participants, 417 (88.35%) completed the trial: 207 in the intervention and 210 in the control group. After six months, no significant effects of fortification with vitamins B9 and B12 were observed on any primary cognitive measures compared to the control. In secondary analysis, however, girls with stunting (height-for-age z-score < -2 standard deviation) who received the intervention showed slower performance in the language subtest of the Language and Memory Test (LMT) than girls without stunting.

conclusionA six-month intervention with vitamin B9- and B12-fortified corn flour did not improve the cognitive function of teenage girls. However, language performance among those who received fortified flour varied by their stunting status. Future randomized controlled trials with longer durations are recommended, with particular attention to adolescence as a critical developmental window.

trial registrationhttps://clinicaltrials.gov/ ; NCT06100146; October 3, 2023.

Indexed as

CognitionFlourFolic AcidFood, FortifiedVitamin B 12Vitamin B ComplexZea maysAdolescentDouble-Blind MethodEthiopiaFemaleHumansFolic AcidVitamin B 12Vitamin B ComplexCognitive functionEthiopiaSmall scale fortificationTeenage girlsVitamin B12Vitamin B9

Identifiers

PMID42400612

What OpenQuestion holds

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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.