Intervention in Minimizing Aflatoxins and Fumonisins Exposure to Children Through Food and Breastfeeding in Tanzania

It has been shown that exposure to mycotoxins through complementary foods and breast milk had profound effects on growth of children from 6 months to 1 year of age. In Tanzania maize is the main ingredient for complementary food, however, the crop is vulnerable to mycotoxins contamination. it has been reported that the most effective way to reduce mycotoxin exposure is to lower the mycotoxins contamination of maize. This study has developed a post-harvest intervention package for use in rural Tanzania to reduce contamination of maize and breast milk with two forms of mycotoxins; aflatoxins and fumonisins. It is composed of 5 components; 1) hand sorting, 2) drying surface, 3) proper drying 4) application of insecticide, 5) dehulling and was introduced in three main maize producing agro-ecological zones. The intervention used randomised controlled trial design where infants less than 8 six months of age were recruited and followed up 6 months after recruitment. The intervention expects to demonstrate the effectiveness of the post harvest intervention package in reducing aflatoxins and fumonisins contamination of maize and subsequent exposure of these toxins to infants and young children through maize based complementary food and breast milk. The findings will be used in developing guidelines for farmers and extension officers to reduce aflatoxins and fumonisins contamination of maize and improve the health of the infants and the whole population. The study hypothiseses that introducing post-harvest intervention package can reduce aflatoxins and fumonisins contamination of maize and subsquent exposure of these toxins to infants and young children through maize based complementary foods and breast milk than routine agriculture extension services offered to the farmers in rural Tanzania. The specific objectives include; * To evaluate the effectiveness of post-harvest intervention package on reduction of aflatoxins and fumonisins contamination of maize and in breast mil