Commentary: A nurturing care perspective on bundling interventions - a reflection on Jeong et al. (2023)

Abstract

Bundling multiple interventions have been implemented and evaluated in response to global recognition that young children benefit from the multiple components of nurturing care. Engaging Fathers for Effective Child Nutrition and Development in Tanzania Study evaluated the impact of adding a parenting intervention to a nutrition program and involving fathers on children's development. The study found that the bundled nutrition-parenting intervention improved children's short-term cognitive and receptive language scores over the nutrition only intervention, with no difference between involving mother-father couples versus mothers only. This study adds to recommendations for future multiple component interventions, including to investigate the mechanisms driving interventions, to address the potential for both benefits and harms, to involve household and community caregivers, and to incorporate implementation research to transition evidence-based programs to scale. Expanding nurturing care through multiple component interventions has the potential to promote equity by ensuring that all children have opportunities for healthy growth and development.