TABLE 1.
Similarities and differences in best practices across nutrition and ECD interventions1
| Best practice in nutrition | Best practice in ECD | |
| Recipients | Adolescent females, women of reproductive age, pregnant women, neonates, and infants and young children (28) | Caregivers, infants, and preschool-aged children through school entry (3) |
| Intervention-specific strategies2 | Provision of health care, nutrition education, and nutrition supplements | Parenting education and support on a range of topics (e.g., importance of play and communication, positive discipline, practices, school readiness, providing support to mothers and fathers) and provision of play material and books (homemade, low-cost, or via book and toy libraries) |
| Intervention-sensitive strategies3 | Agriculture (including biofortification and home-gardening) (32); social safety nets (including conditional and unconditional cash transfers, school feeding programs, household food distributions, and emergency assistance programs) (32); ECD (13, 38); schooling (32) | Social safety nets (including conditional and unconditional cash transfers (36, 37); nutrition (education, including responsive feeding, and supplements) (38, 39) |
| SBCC techniques | Information and instruction: communicating information and verbal instruction about responsive feeding and optimal feeding practices (type, frequency, and preparation of infant foods) (40–45) | Information and instruction: communicating information and verbal instruction about what caregivers should do with their children and why (8) |
| Performance activities: modeling, practicing, and providing feedback for responsive feeding (40); modeling optimal feeding practices (amount, frequency, and preparation of infant foods) (41–45) | Performance activities: demonstrating and practicing with feedback about how to talk and play with children (8, 12) | |
| Problem solving: identifying barriers and solutions to support responsive feeding and optimal feeding practices (40, 41) | Problem solving: addressing maternal depression, need for family support, lack of time, lack of resources, and not knowing how to talk to infants (8, 12) | |
| Social support: encouraging peer (40), community (41), and authority (44) support, and support for responsive feeding and optimal feeding practices (type and amount of infant foods) | Social support: encouraging family support during intervention home visits and facilitating peer groups (8, 12) | |
| Material: provision of nutritional supplements (38, 39) | Material: play material (e.g., homemade, low-cost, or via toy and book libraries) (8, 12) | |
| Small media: illustrating responsive feeding and optimal feeding practices (amount, frequency, and preparation of infant foods) via pictures, flipcharts, and posters (8, 13, 38) | Small media: illustrating stimulation practices via posters, video, and discussion (8, 12) |
1
ECD, early child development; SBCC, social and behavior change communication.
2
Interventions that address the immediate causes of poor outcomes.
3
Interventions that address the underlying causes of poor outcomes.