E.I.D.

PARRY (INDIA) LIMITED

Parry Nutraceuticals Division
Dare House, 4th Floor, # 234, N.S.C. Bose Road, Parrys Corner, Chennai – 600001, India
Tel: + 91-44-2530 6789 / 2530 6818 / 19 / 22, Fax: +91-44- 25306558
E-mail: parrynutraceuticals@parry.murugappa.com www.parrynutraceuticals.com

Spirulina for Children

Much has been written about the health benefits of Spirulina. Of all the humans that can benefit
from taking Spirulina, children can benefit the most. Children love Spirulina and it is safe and
highly nutritious for them.

Children of all ages can eat Spirulina in complete safety and assimilate its nutrients without
difficulty. Even malnourished children with diminished capacity for nutrient absorption could
assimilate Spirulina and recover from malnutrition.

Spirulina can builds up tissue growth, improve vision, strengthens body's immune system there
by improves resistance to chronic infections, ability to heal and ability to concentrate in children.

For Children, who are not able to swallow the capsules, the powder can be taken out of the
capsules and can be mixed with honey and then can be given. The powder can also be mixed
with fruit juice, butte milk, salads and convenient soups. The amount of Spirulina needed
depends on metabolism degree to physical exertion, lifestyle, and an individual child's unique
body needs. By starting with a small amount - 1 capsule/tablet or ¼ teaspoon - and gradually
increasing until the optimal daily amount is found, children can enjoy the benefits of this super
nutritious food from babyhood throughout their lives. (Children of all ages, including infants
can be given 2gms of Spirulina / day).

Spirulina is not a drug, but a natural food supplement, and is not habit forming. Its effects can be
sustained by taking it regularly at approx. 2g / day. To see any benefits of Spirulina, it should be
taken at least for 6-8 weeks.

An ISO 9001, ISO 14001, HACCP and cGMP certified Production facility
E.I.D. PARRY (INDIA) LIMITED
Parry Nutraceuticals Division
Dare House, 4th Floor, # 234, N.S.C. Bose Road, Parrys Corner, Chennai – 600001, India
Tel: + 91-44-2530 6789 / 2530 6818 / 19 / 22, Fax: +91-44- 25306558
E-mail: parrynutraceuticals@parry.murugappa.com www.parrynutraceuticals.com

Some Studies on Spirulina in children world wide:

The children of Chernobyl suffer radiation poisoning from eating food grown on radioactive soil.
Their bone marrow is damaged, rendering them immuno-deficient. Radiation damaged bone
marrow can not produce normal red or white blood cells. The children are anaemic and suffer
from terrible allergic reactions. Children fed just five grams in tablets each day made dramatic
recoveries within six weeks.

As little a ten grams a day brings rapid recovery from malnutrition, especially for infants.
Spirulina was given to undernourished children in Mexico, and adults with beneficial results. It
was more than 10% of their diet and no adverse effects were noted.

In Togo, rapid recovery of malnourished infants was reported in a village clinic. Children given
10-15gms per day mixed with millet, water and spices, recovered in several weeks. In India,
large scale studies with preschool children showed carotenes in Spirulina helped children recover
from symptoms of Vitamin A deficiency.

In Romania, tablets were given to patients with nutritional deficiencies in a Bucharest municipal
clinic. Patients had suffered weight loss in conjunction with chronic pancreatitis, rheumatoid
arthritis, anaemia, diabetes and other symptoms. The patients gained weight and their health
improved.

In China, Spirulina was prescribed at Nanjing Children’s Hospital as a “baby nourishing

formula” with baked barley sprouts. 27 of 30 children aged two to six recovered in a short period
from bad appetite, night sweat, diarrhea and constipation. The researchers concluded this is a
genuine health food for children. In another study, children deficient in the essential mineral
zinc, made more rapid recovery with high zinc Spirulina than a standard zinc supplement.

An ISO 9001, ISO 14001, HACCP and cGMP certified Production facility
E.I.D. PARRY (INDIA) LIMITED
Parry Nutraceuticals Division
Dare House, 4th Floor, # 234, N.S.C. Bose Road, Parrys Corner, Chennai – 600001, India
Tel: + 91-44-2530 6789 / 2530 6818 / 19 / 22, Fax: +91-44- 25306558
E-mail: parrynutraceuticals@parry.murugappa.com www.parrynutraceuticals.com

Indian Studies:
Malnourishment: The study among 20 malnourished children in the age group of six years,
supplementation of Spirulina at 1g/day for three months showed that there was an increase in
serum haemoglobin level and serum protein (1). Change in the academic performance and
intelligence level of the children was also seen in the Spirulina supplemented group.

A follow-up study among 146 malnourished children for a period of one year indicated that apart
from the increase in serum protein and serum albumin level, most of the clinical symptoms like
pale conjunctiva showing higher incidence of anemia, and symptoms like fever, cough, eye and
skin infection were reduced after the Spirulina supplementation (2).

Improvement of Vitamin- A Status: Spirulina feeding among 5000 rural pre-school children
with 1g/day reduced the prevalence of Bitot’s spot and prevented the occurrence of severe form
of Vitamin A deficiency - Corneal xerosis (3). Spirulina supplementation increased the serum
retinol levels and reduced the prevalence of B complex deficiency in the preschool children.

In another study among preschool children of 3-5 years of age, supplementation of Spirulina at
2g/day for a period of 30 days revealed that the bioavailability of carotenes from Spirulina was
comparable to other plant sources (4).

Increase in serum betacarotene level from deficient level to a range close to normal individual
level was seen in a study among 30 pre-school children with the supplementation of Spirulina at
2g/day for a period of 30days (5).

An ISO 9001, ISO 14001, HACCP and cGMP certified Production facility
E.I.D. PARRY (INDIA) LIMITED
Parry Nutraceuticals Division
Dare House, 4th Floor, # 234, N.S.C. Bose Road, Parrys Corner, Chennai – 600001, India
Tel: + 91-44-2530 6789 / 2530 6818 / 19 / 22, Fax: +91-44- 25306558
E-mail: parrynutraceuticals@parry.murugappa.com www.parrynutraceuticals.com

1. Fathima Kauser, Salma Parveen. Effect of Spirulina as a Nutritional Supplement on

malnourished children. Ind. J. Nutr.Dietet.2001; 38:269-273
2. Salma Parveen. Spirulina as a nutritional supplement on malnourished children and its
impact on their physical and cognitive development. Ph.D. Thesis. University of Madras,
December 2002.
3. Seshadri C.V. Large-scale nutritional supplementation with Spirulina alga (LSNS). Monograph
Series on Engineering of Photosynthetic Systems, Vol. 36 1991-93
4. Vure Annapurna, Nisha Shah, Padbidri Bhaskaram, Mahtab Bamji S, Vinodini Reddy.
Bioavailability of Spirulina Carotenes in Preschool Children. J. Clin. Biochem, Nutr., 1991;
10:145-151.
5. Sindhu V. Effect of Supplementation of Spirulina on serum betacarotene levels of preschool
children. M.Sc Thesis, Nagarjuna University, Andhra Pradesh, January 1999.

An ISO 9001, ISO 14001, HACCP and cGMP certified Production facility