The fight against anaemia, a key public health concern in Sri Lanka and a significant contributor to child morbidity rates, is being boosted by a research grant by the Anchor Institute.
The US$25,000 grant will support a research programme being led by Ms. Pamoda Gooneratne, nutritionist, under the supervision of Prof. A. R. Wickremasinghe, Dr. Inoka Uluwaduge and Dr. Deepa Gunasekera of Faculty of Medicine, University of Kelaniya, a press release from Fonterra Brands Lanka, the Colombo unit of Anchor milk said.
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| Seen here Prof. A. R. Wickremasinghe, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine, University of Kelaniya, receiving the Anchor grant from Achyut Reddy, Managing Director of Fonterra Brands Lanka. |
The research will study the prevalence of nutritional anaemia amongst Sri Lankan primary school children between the age of 5 and 10 years. “The Anchor Institute’s mission is to help each and every child reach his or her potential by supporting families and providing the very best in nutrition,” Achyut Reddy, Managing Director of Fonterra Brands Lanka, said.
“Fonterra combines expertise in scientific research with a deep knowledge of dairy product development to bring the best in dairy nutrition to families the world over, and the Anchor Institute is proud to be able to provide this support in Sri Lanka”
The grant will go towards a 30-month study to determine the cause and extent of anaemia in early childhood. The findings will provide useful evidence to develop a nutritional guide for Sri Lankan parents and policy makers as anaemia is a key public health concern affecting all sectors of society and contributing to child morbidity rates.
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