RUTF vs. Khichuri-Halwa: Impact on Gut Microbiome Diversity in Young Children #1433198 (License: Personal Use)

This bar chart illustrates the change in age-adjusted Shannon Diversity Index (SDI) for healthy children (>6 months) following two nutritional interventions-Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF) and Khichuri-Halwa-tracked over multiple follow-up intervals (<1, 1-2, 2-3, 3-4, >4 months). RUTF consistently produced larger positive shifts in microbial diversity, particularly during early follow-up, while Khichuri-Halwa showed modest or non-significant changes, with some timepoints marked “ns” (not significant). Error bars indicate variability, and asterisks denote statistical significance (p<0.05, p<0.001).

Used in clinical nutrition research articles, public health reports, or pediatric gastroenterology webpages to visualize efficacy of therapeutic foods on gut microbiome recovery in undernourished children; targets researchers, clinicians, and policymakers seeking evidence-based dietary interventions.