The ayurvedic zinc tablet containing 20 mg of jasad bhasma, equivalent to
16.6 mg of elemental zinc, was given to each girl in the J group every day for 6
school days/week under the guidance of an ayurvedic doctor. The in vitro dialysate
of the ayurvedic zinc tablet was found to be 33% using the same protocol as
for the food supplements, i.e., the in vitro dialysate property by simulating
gastrointestinal conditions and atomic absorption spectrometry [16].
The details of these interventions, the food supplement and the ayurvedic
zinc tablet supplement, have been published [19]. The girls from both intervention
groups ingested the supplement under the supervision of a trained
investigator and a written record of consumption of the supplement for each girl
was maintained. The compliance with supplementation was calculated as the
percentage of days the supplement was taken during the entire 60-d period.