Boosting the availability of key vitamins and nutrients in the diets of people in developing countries is vital to the long-term health and economic stability of those nations, report scientists who will speak Friday, Feb. 18, at a UC Davis-coordinated symposium during the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Washington, D.C.

"Micronutrient deficiency -- the lack not just of calories but of critically important vitamins and minerals -- is a hidden form of malnutrition that affects half of the children in developing nations," said Montague Demment, director of the Global Livestock Collaborative Research Support Program at UC Davis. "By tailoring the diets of the children in these countries to assure that they are eating foods that fulfill their micronutrient needs, it is possible to significantly improve their mental, physical and immune-system development and, in the long run, help those countries build their capacity to participate in the global economy.

"Nutritionists now are finding that providing the appropriate foods, rather than supplemental pills, holds great promise for breaking the link between poverty and malnutrition," Demment said. "In the emerging information age, proper nutrition represents an investment in the creative and entrepreneurial capabilities of the people and, in turn, in a nation's economic success."

He noted that developing the economies of poor countries is one of the pillars of President Bush's national security strategy.

During the symposium, Demment and nutritionist Lindsay Allen, who directs the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Human Nutrition Research Center at UC Davis, will emphasize the potential for improving micronutrient nutrition by boosting consumption of meat and milk in developing countries.

"Deficiencies of micronutrients such as vitamin A, B-12, iron, zinc, calcium and riboflavin in developing nations are mainly due to the fact that there is not enough meat, dairy products, eggs or fish in the diets," said Allen. "Research has shown that relatively small amounts of such foods from animals can substantially improve the nutritional status of people when they are added to the traditional diets of plant-based foods."

Other researchers participating in the symposium will suggest improving micronutrient consumption in developing nations by providing a diversity of foods, including both animal- and plant-based foods and, in one case in Kenya, simply introducing vitamin-A-rich orange sweet potatoes as a substitute for the traditionally grown white sweet potatoes. Another researcher will discuss the potential of using conventional breeding practices to boost the nutrient content of food crops.

The symposium, titled "Food-Based Approaches to Micronutrient Nutrition for Human and National Development," will be presented from 1:45 p.m. to 3:15 p.m. Friday, Feb. 18. A news briefing on the symposium, coordinated by the American Association for the Advancement of Science, will be held at the meeting Sunday, Feb. 20.