Dear Sir,


This is Nadia (Public Health adviser) from Oxfam Pkaistan.
I would like to talk and know more about the article you shared at SusanA forum.
Could you please share your email address or skype ID so that we can be direct in this specific discussion.

My contact details are as below....

email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
skype: nadiaxiri

Cheers!!

Nadia

Hi Premananda

As requested I am sending the full document on the subject for your perusal and comments. Warm regdrs

BBSamanta

Hi Bobbie
Thanks for your interest. While you are looking at the link between open defecation and helminthic infestation, the project I am talking about is on Iron Deficiency Anaemia due to worm infestation (including helminthic infestation)and how to reduce that through better hygiene practices. Let me know whether you would like to have the full report on the process of planning and implementation of the project. Warm regards BBSamanta

Hi, I am from Sampark Trust, Bhubaneswar, Odisha. It is great to know the reduction of IDA among girls directly linked with promotion of improved sanitation. Could you share the details.

Hi Bidhu

This is very interesting. I am managing a study looking at the relationship between open defecation, geophagia (soil eating) and helminthic infections. It would be useful to read about your work in more detail. Could you post your report?

-- Bobbie Louton Partners in Development 033 342 3012 073 766 1139

Hi
I am Bidhu Bhushan Samanta, PhD from India, currently Chairman (Hon) of a professional group in the eastern part of India called Multi Applied System (MAS). I am in WASH sector since 1978. Have worked in Government, consultancy group before joining UNICEF where I worked in the sector both in India and abroad for around 17 years.I am going to talk about a topic that is not so much discussed in WASH Sector.

Iron deficiency anaemia (IDA) is a condition where a person has inadequate amounts of iron in the blood to meet body demand. According to WHO nine out of ten persons suffering from anaemia live in developing countries and on an average every second pregnant women and four out of ten school going children are anaemic.

We all know that adolescence is a an critical phase in life that prepares human being for adulthood. It has been observed that during this period the adolescents gain 50% of their adult weight, 25% of their adult height and 50% of their skeletal mass. The requirements of iron among girls are more than that of boys for obvious reasons. We also know that anaemic adolescent girls when married young and get pregnant early, are more likely to deliver low birth weight babies leading to high infant and maternal mortality.

It has also been observed that the world's leading cause of gastrointestinal blood loss is parasitic infestation particularly hookworm. Over one billion people, mostly in tropical and sub-tropical areas are infested with these parasites and the daily blood loss is estimated to exceed 11 million litres. Round worm and whip worm that take the faecal-oral route also contribute to malnutrition among adolescent girls.

A three-year project (2008-2011)undertaken by MAS (in which I was the Project Director) in 25 villages covering a total of over 2,000 adolescent girls in the age-group 12-19 years found out that promoting improved sanitation and better hygiene practices led to a drastic reduction in IDA among adolescent girls. Even the changes in the process indicators on various hygiene practices supported such phenomenon. The project was funded by Population Foundation of India, New Delhi. It was a convergent project involving Rural Development (in charge of WASH), Health, Education and Women and Child Development. Both the bench mark survey and the end-project evaluation were carried out by independent agencies to maintain neutrality of the results. The whole process has since been documented and available.