DUSHANBE, June 4, Asia-Plus  -- A vitamin A capsule distribution campaign, launched in Tajikistan on June 1, will last till June 10, according to the Ministry of Health (MoH).

Over these ten days the Ministry of Health of Health and its partners aim to provide vitamin A to more than 758,000 Tajik children under the age of 5 thereby preventing blindness and saving lives as their immune systems are strengthened to fight common childhood killers, including diarrhea and measles.

The source at a MoH said that bulks of vitamin A capsules have been provided to Tajikistan by UNICEF CO Tajikistan since 2004.  

Vitamin A deficiency is estimated to affect millions of children around the world. Approximately 250,000-500,000 children in developing countries become blind each year owing to vitamin A deficiency, with the highest prevalence in Southeast Asia and Africa.  According to the World Health Organization (WHO), vitamin A deficiency is under control in the United States, but in developing countries vitamin A deficiency is a significant concern.  With the high prevalence of vitamin A deficiency, the WHO has implemented several initiatives for supplementation of vitamin A in developing countries.  Some of these strategies include intake of vitamin A through a combination of breast feeding, dietary intake, food fortification, and supplementation.  Through the efforts of WHO and its partners, an estimated 1.25 million deaths since 1998 in 40 countries due to vitamin A deficiency have been averted.