The effectiveness of egg supplementation on nutritional status, physical fitness and cognition of school-aged children (8–12 Years) in Ho Municipality, Ghana

• Published in: Human nutrition & metabolism 2024-03, Vol.35, p.200246, Article 200246
• Main Authors: Amenya, Priscilla Cecilia Akpene, Annan, Reginald Adjetey, Apprey, Charles, Kpewou, Daniel Edem, Annor, Isaac Agyei
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Cognition performance; Egg supplementation; Nutritional status; Physical fitness; School children
• ISSN: 2666-1497; 2666-1497
• DOI: 10.1016/j.hnm.2024.200246

Egg is a cheap source of essential micronutrients and high-quality protein, which can contribute to the daily nutritional needs of children, support their growth and brain development. Aim: The study evaluated the effectiveness of egg supplementation on nutritional status, physical fitness, and cognition of school-aged Children (8–12 Years) in Ho Municipality, Ghana. A school-based, double-blind randomized controlled trial design was adopted. Children aged 8 to 12 years from government-run primary schools were randomly allocated to receive either egg supplementation three times a week for three months or no supplementation at all for three months. Dietary intakes using a repeated 24-h dietary recall, Raven's cognition test, fitness level, BMI-for-age, and serum levels of ferritin, zinc, and albumin were assessed at baseline and after the intervention. At pre-intervention, mean intake of several nutrients, including energy, CHO, protein, fat, iron zinc and folate were significantly higher in the intervention group. Post-intervention, these differences significantly increased for protein, fat, and iron, and reduced for energy, carbohydrate, folate, vitamin B6 and 12. Children on egg supplementation had a much higher increase in vitamin A intake (142.0 μg) than the controls (49.8 μg) between pre-and post-intervention. Regarding the physical fitness markers, pre-intervention mean handgrip, forward jump and total fitness scores were all higher in the intervention group and similar for the 50-m run. Post-intervention, the difference was lost while the total fitness score increased rather among controls (p