ABSTRACT
The provision of iron supplements during pregnancy as a strategy for the prevention and control of nutritional anemias is the oldest and most common supplementation activity which was established in the 1960s. Iron supplementation has reappeared as the difficulties in developing effective programs have become apparent. For many years, folic acid has been provided to pregnant women in combination with iron,
but it has received much less attention; little is known about the relative importance of folic acid for nutritional anemia. The first guideline for routine supplementation of young children with iron and folic acid was recently published and discussions on the importance of providing supplements to adolescents, including vitamin A for utilization of iron stores, have just begun.
