Zinc supplements have been shown to reduce the duration and severity of acute and persistent diarrhea in children, the researchers write in the September issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Dr. Dilip Mahalanabis, from the Society for Applied Studies, Calcutta, India, and his colleagues sought to study the effect of zinc supplementation in children with measles accompanied by pneumonia.

The researchers conducted a randomized, placebo-controlled trial on 85 children admitted with measles and pneumonia. All of the children received 100,000 International Units of vitamin A orally on admission and a full course of antibiotics. Forty-two children received 20 mg of oral zinc supplements twice daily during the course of hospitalization, while the remaining 43 were given placebo and served as controls.

Dr. Mahalanabis and colleagues observed that the time taken for clinical improvement was similar in both the zinc-supplemented and control groups. The time taken for regaining appetite, becoming afebrile, resolution of tachypnea and clinical cure or "much-improved" status showed no significant differences between the groups.

The serum zinc levels at the time of admission were low in 50% of children in the zinc-supplemented group and 68% of controls, the researchers note. By discharge, serum zinc levels rose to a similar degree in both groups.

Long-term zinc supplements have been shown to prevent pneumonia in children in developing countries, the researchers explain. However, when given during acute illness, there "probably is insufficient time" to produce a beneficial effect on the immune system, they hypothesize.

"The study did not show a clinically worthwhile benefit from the administration of zinc as an adjunct therapy in children with measles and pneumonia," Dr. Mahalanabis and colleagues conclude.

Am J Clin Nutr 2002;76:604-607.