Effects of dietary intervention on vitamin B12 status and cognitive level of 18-month-old toddlers in high-poverty areas: a cluster-randomized controlled trial

Table 1 Comparison of anthropometric outcomes and biochemical markers by intervention group at age 18 months

Variables	All subjects (n = 180)	Meat group (n = 60)	Fortified cereal group (n = 60)	Local cereal group (n = 60)	P value
Age (months)	17.9 ± 0.2^a)	17.9 ± 0.1	18.0 ± 0.2	17.9 ± 0.2	0.001
Male [n(%)]	91 (50.6)	31 (51.7)	29 (48.3)	29 (48.3)	0.915
LAZ	−1.6 ± 1.0	−1.5 ± 1.0	−1.8 ± 0.9	− 1.6 ± 1.1	0.196
WAZ	−0.9 ± 0.9	−0.9 ± 0.9	−1.0 ± 0.9	−0.8 ± 1.0	0.417
WLZ	−0.2 ± 0.9	−0.3 ± 0.9	− 0.2 ± 0.8	−0.1 ± 0.9	0.361
HcAZ	−0.3 ± 0.9	−0.4 ± 0.8	− 0.3 ± 0.9	−0.3 ± 0.9	0.802
VitB₁₂ (pg/mL)^b)	360.0 (233.0~573.8)^c)	338.0 (233.0~578.3)^d)e)	509.5 (364.8~992.3)^d)	241.0 (185.5~396.3)	< 0.001
tHcy (μmol/L)^b)	8.2 (6.9~10.2)	8.0 (6.6~10.3)^d)	7.4 (6.1~8.9)^d)	9.2 (7.8~11.3)	< 0.001
Hb (g/L)	122.5 ± 11.8	123.3 ± 12.5	123.6 ± 9.9	120.7 ± 12.8	0.346
MCV (fL)	78.9 ± 6.1	79.7 ± 5.0	78.8 ± 6.2	78.3 ± 6.9	0.445
MCH (pg)	26.8 ± 2.5	27.1 ± 2.4	26.9 ± 2.5	26.3 ± 2.6	0.215
MCHC (g/L)	339.6 ± 19.2	340.5 ± 19.9	342.0 ± 21.9	336.5 ± 15.1	0.266

a) Mean ± SD (for all results in this format)
b) Data there were not normally distributed were compared after log transformations among the three groups by ANOVA
c) Median; interquartile range in parentheses (for all results in this format)
d) Compared with the local cereal group, P < 0.05
e) Compared with the fortified cereal group, P < 0.05

ISSN: 1471-2431