Homemade food formula or supplement economic, energetic, nutritious, viable, appetizing, effective and sustainable for treatment of uncomplicated acute malnutrition without complications.
The mixture presents similarities with the RUTF/ATLU (Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food).
Its name honors the inhabitants of Madagascar, known as malagasys or for short gasys.
Homemade food formula or supplement economic, energetic, nutritious, viable, appetizing, effective and sustainable for treatment of uncomplicated acute malnutrition without complications.
The mixture presents similarities with the RUTF (Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Foods).
Its name honors the inhabitants of Madagascar, known as malagasys or for short gasys.
During my passage through the Coconut Water Foundation in Madagascar, I launched the post Acceptance and knowledge of Moringa and Alfalfa Foliar Extract […] in Madagascar. In it I suggested:
«[…] think about developing a home-made moringa-based complementary food that is nutritious, caloric, easy to consume, economical and feasible. […] use simple methods that allow cooks to prepare it themselves. […] extrapolate to other places where malnutrition levels are high”.
Some time later, the idea materialized! creating an alternative to traditional treatments for the Malagasy population.
During my passage through the Coconut Water Foundation in Madagascar, I launched the post Acceptance and knowledge of Moringa and Alfalfa Foliar Extract […] in Madagascar. In it I suggested:
«[…] think about developing a home-made moringa-based complementary food that is nutritious, caloric, easy to consume, economical and feasible. […] use simple methods that allow cooks to prepare it themselves. […] extrapolate to other places where malnutrition levels are high”.
Some time later, the idea materialized! creating an alternative to traditional treatments for the Malagasy population.
Its main ingredients are tuber, peanut, oil and powdered moringa leaf.
The tuber of preference is the sweet potato, due to its superiority in precursors of vitamin A, fiber and calcium. However, the choice will depend on availability. Below is the nutritional profile of the main tubers in Madagascar:
Moringa is a tree millennial that grows well in almost any type of soil. It is native to areas close to the Himalayas, however, today, it is also found in different areas of the tropics and subtropics. Their leaves are great allies in the fight against malnutrition, contributing to the prevention of mineral and vitamin deficiencies. Then the nutritional profile of moringa leaves oleifera dried:
They say that comparisons are odious and the intention of Gasy Formula is not to be better or identical to other RUTF/ATLU. The intention is to be a Nutritious and effective alternative or supplement for the treatment of emaciation. Also a preventative formula in situations of food insecurity where the risk of nutritional deficiency is high. Below is a comparison between the contribution of 2 sachets of RUTF/ATLU and a plate of Gasy Formula puree made from potato, cassava or sweet potato:
[The vitamin D content of the formula should be interpreted with caution, as it is derived from estimates based on food composition tables and databases, and may reflect an artifact of the calculation method rather than a direct determination of the product.]
As can be seen in the table, the most complete option and similar to the RUTF/ATLU is the one made from sweet potato.
(*The lowest possible value for vitamin A precursors has been chosen. However, this value could be significantly higher depending on the type of moringa used.)
Since its creation in 2019 to the present, its use has made it possible to reduce expenses on malnutrition treatments at the Agua de Coco Foundation by half:
From 2022 and until today, Gasy Formula costs 3,3 times less than the industrial RUTF treatmentThis is because the price increase of the latter has been higher than the price increase of the ingredients of Gasy Formula (although unfortunately everything has increased in recent times...).
Gasy Formula is a good strategy in the fight against malnutrition. Its input must be complementary to the rest of the day's food. Their forms of cooking are varied. Sample fitness and effectiveness in increasing weight and hemoglobin levels in blood. This formula could be apply to other contexts making certain adaptations according to the available food and the local culture.
There are already other NGOs using Gasy Formula! ❤️
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