The results of the study revealed that children fed on SPI based food mix showed very significant improvement in terms of all the anthropometric and clinical parameters used, in comparison to the groups fed on food mix and home diet under the centrally sponsored Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS).

The improvements in anthropometric and clinical parameters are much startling in the group of children receiving SPI based food in sufficient quantity to bridge the calorie gap.

The study stated that `the phenomenal improvements noticed in children on SPI based food mix in physical growth parameters, bio-chemical indices (haemoglobin) and other clinical paramters bring out clearly the importance of using a protien of high biological efficacy and inherently rich in important micro-nutrients like iron and zinc'. The group of children receiving the SPI mix at 62 gram filling the calorie gap demonstrated the most beneficial effects followed by the group receiving the SPI food mix at the level of 49 gram to provide the same amount of calories as in the standard ICDS meal.

The study revealed that the major cause for malnutrition amongst children is the early cessation of breast feeding, early introduction of bottle feeding and improper weaning practices or prolonged exclusive breast feeding with no or improper weaning foods. Soya has been acclaimed to be the richest vegetarian source of protien worldover. Soya based supplementary foods are calorie dense, protien rich and provide adequate micro-nutrients which help to alleviate protien energy malnutrition (PEM) in a cost effective way.

While long-term efforts to mitigate this malnutrition profile is ideal, the need for direct intervention strategies with nutrient dense food formulations coupled with nutrient education for sustainability as an immediate remedy cannot be overruled. Towards this effort the role of soyabeans in nutrient packed foods needs emphasis and exploration,the study concluded.