As for height, no alteration was observed in the test group. In the control group, the decrease in the mean z-score for H/A, although statistically significant, was not relevant from a clinical viewpoint, considering that this decrease did not cause alterations in the nutritional status. In this respect, this study differs from another recently published study, which showed that zinc supplementation effectively contributed to the growth of children under the age of 5 years, and that the dose of 10 mg/day, offered during 24 weeks, promoted best results for height increase.22 Although it is not possible to identify the reasons for the abovementioned discrepancy,

both the short intervention period,

perhaps insufficient to identify changes in anthropometry especially with regard to height, and the dose of zinc used, Lumacaftor cost may have been limiting factors in this study. Regarding DD, although the incidence was lower in the test group, the difference compared to the control group was not significant and, additionally, there was no difference in the duration of disease episodes between the groups. This result is similar to those of two other studies with children supplemented with zinc for 14 days, which showed no significant effects in reducing the incidence or prevalence of DD.23 and 24 The different result obtained in a study selleck chemicals llc conducted in Brazil is noteworthy. In that study, zinc supplementation was proven to be effective in reducing the duration and number of stools in children aged 3 to 60 months who had DD.25 Contrary to what was described for DD, the test group showed a higher risk of developing ARI (-)-p-Bromotetramisole Oxalate when compared to control group; however, these findings were not statistically significant. A meta-analysis published by Aggarwal et al. evaluated the performance of zinc supplementation and concluded that it reduced the incidence of ARI in children by 8%.26 A Brazilian study with children with low birth weight found

a 33% reduction in the prevalence of coughing among the group supplemented with 5 mg/day of zinc. No significant difference, however, was observed when other characteristic symptoms of respiratory infection (fever, increased respiratory rate, and fatigue) were analyzed.27 The fact that this study found no positive results regarding zinc supplementation on the occurrence of the assessed diseases may be due to the healthy status of the study population. Most published studies used as a sample children who already had DD or ARI,23 and 24 malnutrition, or impaired immune function, such as those with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection.28 It is worth mentioning that several factors, such as low immunity, malnutrition, and poor hygiene10 and 29 are involved in the etiology of the diseases being assessed.