Regarding Government based nutritional supplementation in SriLanka a I

Regarding Government based nutritional supplementation in SriLanka a) Iron therapy is given to school children weekly for 6months b) Multiple Micronutrient therapy is started at the age of 1year c) Thriposha supplementation is given to all children under 5years d) Commencemnt of Antihelminthic therapy at 1year of age e) Vitamin A megadose is started at 6 months of age

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Sri Lanka national nutritional supplementation program school children iron vitamin A anthelmintic thriposha

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https://nutrition.health.gov.lk/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/N…

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Sri Lanka national deworming anthelmintic program children age schedule Ministry of Health

I now have all the information needed from Sri Lanka's official National Strategy document. Let me compile the analysis.

Here is a detailed assessment of each statement against Sri Lanka's official National Strategy for Prevention and Control of Micronutrient Deficiencies 2017-2022:

Sri Lanka Government Nutritional Supplementation Program - MCQ Analysis

a) Iron therapy is given to school children weekly for 6 months - ✅ TRUE

This is correct. Sri Lanka's Weekly Iron-Folic Acid Supplementation (WIFS) program covers all children in grades 1 to 13 with:

Elemental iron: 60 mg once a week
Folic acid: 400 µg once a week
Ascorbic acid: 100 mg once a week
Duration: 6 months per annum, continuously

The programme was based on evidence that weekly supervised iron supplementation was as effective as daily supplementation in Sri Lankan school children (Jayatissa and Piyasena, 1999).

b) Multiple Micronutrient (MMN) therapy is started at the age of 1 year - ❌ FALSE

This statement is incorrect. According to the official schedule, MMN powder is given:

Target: All children (except low birth weight and preterm infants)
Starting from 6 months of age, for 60 consecutive days
Administered at 6 months, 12 months, and 18 months of age

So MMN is started at 6 months, not 1 year. The age of 1 year (12 months) is one of the subsequent doses, not the commencement.

c) Thriposha supplementation is given to all children under 5 years - ❌ FALSE

This statement is incorrect. Thriposha is not given to all children under 5. It is targeted specifically at:

Underweight children from 6 months to 5 years (50g daily, until weight normalizes plus 3 months continuation)
Also given to pregnant and lactating mothers

Thriposha is a targeted supplementary food for at-risk / underweight children, not a universal supplement for all under-5s. Children identified with moderate acute malnutrition (MAM) or growth faltering are the beneficiaries.

d) Commencement of Anthelmintic therapy at 1 year of age - ✅ TRUE

This is correct. WHO recommends preventive chemotherapy (deworming) starting at 12-23 months of age. Sri Lanka's program aligns with this - anthelmintic (deworming) therapy begins at 1 year (12 months) of age for preschool children in areas where soil-transmitted helminth (STH) prevalence is ≥20%. Albendazole 200 mg (half dose) is used for children under 24 months. This is integrated with the child health program schedule.

e) Vitamin A megadose is started at 6 months of age - ✅ TRUE

This is correct. The official schedule states:

Target: All children
Dose: 100,000 IU every 6 months
Starting from the age of 6 months and continued up to 5 years

So the first Vitamin A megadose is given at 6 months, then repeated every 6 months until age 5.

Summary Table

Statement	Verdict	Key Fact
a) Iron weekly for 6 months in school children	TRUE	60 mg elemental iron weekly, 6 months/year, grades 1-13
b) MMN starts at 1 year	FALSE	MMN starts at 6 months; 12 months is the 2nd dose
c) Thriposha for ALL children under 5	FALSE	Only for underweight children 6 months to 5 years
d) Anthelmintic starts at 1 year	TRUE	Deworming commences at 12 months of age
e) Vitamin A megadose starts at 6 months	TRUE	100,000 IU every 6 months, starting from 6 months

Answers: a-True, b-False, c-False, d-True, e-True

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