[Evaluation of the Reinforced subprogram of the Chilean National supplemental Nutrition Program]

Chile's National Supplementary Feeding Program constitutes the main food intervention program of the country. Its annual budget amounts to US $ 65 million covering approximately 55% of the national population of children under 6 years of age. It includes two subprograms, the Basic one for normally growing children and the Reinforced one for undernourished children and those at risk of becoming undernourished. This last group amounted in 1990 to 17% of the total, receiving 50% of the food distributed. This study is the first evaluation carried out on the Reinforced subprogram, having as general objective to measure its efficiency in terms of the change in the nutritional status of the targeted children. Presently, children under two are targeted if a) are undernourished by wt/ht (< -1 S.D. NCHS) or b) have less weight increase than 75% of the Ministry of Health's norm (similar to NCHS) during two consecutive health controls. The only way these children are discharged is, if during three consecutive controls (monthly) they increase more than 75% of the same norm. The analysis involved nutritional evaluations at birth, when the children were targeted and when they were discharged, showing that the improvement of their nutritional status was very unsatisfactory.